


Knight at Sunrise

by Sephirron



Series: Tales of Chivalry [2]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, CF Ingrid, Crimson Flower, F/F, black eagle strike force, edelgrid, ingrid: what's a knight?, no beta we die like Glenn, the girls are fightingggggg
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:20:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27014173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sephirron/pseuds/Sephirron
Summary: Ingrid left her creed of knighthood behind to serve and live beside Edelgard, to fight for her cause, and to free them from the shackles of the crest system. The endless battle is bloody and laden with loss - the emperor and her knight would do anything to protect one another. Their ideas of protection are different - Edelgard still runs and Ingrid is still stubborn. If they survive, there’s no promise that their love will.Aka. Edelgrid during Crimson Flower.
Relationships: Ingrid Brandl Galatea & Edelgard von Hresvelg, Ingrid Brandl Galatea/Edelgard von Hresvelg
Series: Tales of Chivalry [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1904752
Comments: 48
Kudos: 79





	1. Before the Invasion

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for supporting this little Edelgrid series - I wasn't expecting the amount of love but I am grateful nonetheless! Thank you also for waiting patiently for this update, I realize it's been over a month and I have ONCE AGAIN fallen victim to my gay brain in doing another multichap project. I decided to separate part 2 into chapters because there's A LOT of ground to cover and I don't want to rush storytelling. That means a lot of content for you all that I hope you will continue to support!
> 
> I hope you enjoy the rare gem that is the emperor & her knight <3

Enbarr was hot and the sun was shining down in unforgiving heat. It was the opposite of what Ingrid was used to - frigid winters and brisk air a distant memory. But like the heat akin to fire, her strikes clanged with live steel in ferocity, sparking at every clash. Her lance head collided with a sword in a twirling slice before parrying off one another. Her sparring partner was just as ferocious, his craving for strength nearly unmatched. But Ingrid needed to be stronger. War was coming.

She let out another battle cry and clashed with Felix once again, her lance spinning and piercing in strikes, Felix meeting her blow for blow. Their sounds of exertion and steel sung as it cut through the air filled the wide training grounds of the imperial palace. Soldiers would stop and stare for a while, while others walked away quickly in slight fear that they would get in the way or be called upon to be made an example of. The duel finished as they both made strikes that put their blades at each other’s throats. For a tense moment they held it there before withdrawing.

“You’re more intense than usual today,” Felix remarked while sheathing his sword. 

Ingrid wiped the sweat away from her forehead with the back of her arm. Their sleeveless tops had been soaked through from the spar. Ingrid stabbed her lance into the dirt. 

“We have to be ready. The march for the invasion is tomorrow,” Ingrid replied.

Felix said nothing. He would never be the one to ask her what was one her mind nor did he want to seem like he cared about such things. Ingrid had plenty of friends but Felix and Sylvain grew up with her. And now they were on the opposite side of the country and now, loyalties. No one else knew her quite like they did. So she found the words spilling from her mouth despite herself.

“Are you happy with the decision you made?”

Felix’s eyes narrowed. “I’m never happy.”

Ingrid groaned and pointed an accusing finger at her friend. “You know what I mean, Felix!”

“I don’t know what nonsense you want me to spew at you to make you feel better about whatever little fight you had with Edelgard,” Felix huffed. He watched Ingrid wince, caught at her true intention. The tightness in his shoulders loosened minutely as he watched Ingrid’s lips curve into a frown. He continued, albeit annoyed. “This was the only path, Ingrid. We couldn’t have stayed.”

Ingrid opened her mouth and closed it, pursing her lips together. “Even after Remire… and Captain Jeralt?”

Felix hummed, eyes pointed towards the sky. “Isn’t the Professor better suited for this conversation? She joined with the emperor as well, you know - and that was her father.”

“I… I supposed you’re right. I should seek her advice,” Ingrid replied thoughtfully. “Thanks Felix.”

“Tch. Whatever.” 

Ingrid smiled in his direction regardless before turning on her heel to search for the Professor. She didn’t feel Felix’s stare on her back as she went. The warrior cut his gaze to the soldiers still idly standing by. The grip on his sword tightened as he barked.

“Hey! You just going to stand there staring all day or are you going to give my blade a challenge?”

The soldiers scattered to their duties like a flock of frightened birds. Felix rolled his eyes in irritation. In the corner of his eye, he caught the flash of a red cape and briefly caught eyes with Edelgard, Hubert by her side as always. Ingrid had long retreated in the opposite direction and Felix could see the brief turmoil in the emperor’s eyes before she turned away from him, walking briskly to whatever meeting she had to attend. 

Felix crossed his arms over his chest once again and sighed. “Idiots.”

* * *

Ingrid had walked through the halls of the palace for the Professor and her signature green hair. She had stormed through these halls earlier that morning, in anger and frustration. Her mind settled on the training ground to blow off steam on an unlucky practice dummy. It wasn’t until Felix came that he offered her a real challenge to whatever emotions she was feeling, the wooden figure already splintered in several places. Felix looked as though he almost felt bad for it.

Ingrid sighed to herself, her memories of that morning returning to her full force.

The invasion was fast approaching and everyone was on edge. No one was particularly eager to meet former classmates in battle and the potential of killing them enough to make some of them sick. Ingrid was resolved however, this was the path she chose, Edelgard was who she chose. She wouldn’t turn her back on that, knight or not. She believed in Edelgard’s cause - the crest system had truly caused far too much suffering and to think that it was beasts pretending to be gods. It was enough to shake her faith in the church in its entirety. 

But Ingrid still had her doubts, despite the fact that she confessed to Edelgard so devotedly and the newly crowned emperor had returned her feelings. It wouldn’t change her mind but it bothered her, so much that not even late night flights with Astra could clear her head. So that morning, on the rare occasion that she could share tea with Edelgard in the privacy of her chambers, she asked. 

“Edelgard, I need to ask you something,” Ingrid spoke up, her fingers tightening over her knee caps, hoping to grasp onto some courage. 

Edelgard paused mid sip and set her tea cup down. Her violet eyes were soft and Ingrid almost lost her nerve, knowing the persona she would meet if she didn’t ask this inquiry correctly. Edelgard never showed this softer side to anyone and Ingrid was afraid - afraid that she could lose it if she messed this up. But at the same time, Edelgard hadn’t been completely truthful with her and that uncertainty and pain was enough for the knight to risk it. 

“What is it, Ingrid?” Edelgard asked, genuine concern laced in her voice.

_Damn it, don’t do that._ Ingrid cursed in her mind. She took a deep breath and met Edelgard’s curious eyes with her determined own.

“I need to know why you were the Flame Emperor.”

Edelgard’s eyes widened for just a split second before receding back into a stoic expression. A wry smile overcame her lips, as if she’d been expecting this, just maybe not so soon. Or maybe she just hoped she could avoid it for as long as possible. Edelgard folded her gloved hands atop the table, a slight tightness in them. Ingrid thought that maybe she was afraid too.

“I knew you’d ask eventually, it’s only natural,” Edelgard began. Ingrid sat up slightly in anticipation of her answer. Edelgard’s smile turned to a frown. “But, I can’t say why. Not yet anyway.”

Ingrid immediately deflated. “Why not?”

“Ingrid there’s forces in this world at large but we have a bigger enemy to face first. We must remain focused on-”

Ingrid bowed her head low, her fingers sore from how hard she was gripping her legs. Her voice cut off Edelgard’s words, a suffocating feeling in her throat as she struggled to utter them. “What about all the people that died at Remire? All those people, those innocent children. What about them? You were there Edelgard, you said you worked with Solon. Tell me why you would work with such despicable people that murdered so many, murdered the Professor’s father.”

“Ingrid-”

“Tell me why,” Ingrid said again, tearfully but voice shaking with oncoming frustration.

“Ingrid, I promise you, I had nothing to do with those tragedies. I tried to stop them within my power. You have to trust me,” Edelgard replied, attempting to placate the knight. Had it been any other person, she would’ve dismissed them or had been more harsh. But this was Ingrid and she loved her. _Which was why-_

“Trust you?” Ingrid scoffed and Edelgard felt a pang in her heart. Ingrid had never spoken to her this way. The tone was almost unrecognizable. “How could you ask that of me?”

“Ingrid, please-”

“Deep down, you don't trust _me_ , Edelgard. I threw myself in front of death for you, to protect you, and you pushed me away. You want to blame my knighthood for being so reckless but what about you, huh? Asking us to lay down our lives and you can’t even tell me of all people the truth.”

Edelgard stayed silent, jaw slack. No matter what she would’ve said, Ingrid wouldn’t have heard her. There was a fire in her eyes but also a grief in them. Edelgard knew it was her fault and she wouldn’t dare try to downplay that. She convinced herself that this was to protect her, so she still said nothing.

Ingrid stood and turned away from Edelgard before she could see the tears finally falling from her eyes. “I’m leaving.”

The knight wouldn’t see the emperor solemnly nod to herself as she listened to the door to her chambers open and close with a solitary click. Edelgard folded her hands, almost like a prayer as she rested her forehead against them, brow creased. She squeezed her hands so tight to keep her own tears from falling. She would remind herself that this was to protect Ingrid from what she wasn’t ready for yet. 

_But at what cost,_ Edelgard wondered as the sight of watching Ingrid leave her behind burned through her heart. 

Ingrid’s heart felt heavy in her chest and it was only when she got so lost in her thoughts, did she bump into a solid surface with a light ‘oof’. Ingrid blinked a couple times as she came face to face with the Professor who had a curious look in her eyes. 

“Oh! Professor! My apologies, I wasn’t looking where I was going,” Ingrid said sheepishly.

“Think nothing of it,” Byleth waved off before regarding her with just the slightest raise in her brow. “It’s not like you to be so lost in thought.”

“No, I suppose not,” Ingrid mumbled. “Actually Professor, I’ve been meaning to speak with you, if you can spare the time.”

Byleth gave her another curious look before nodding slowly. She turned on her heel and led the way. They walked outside of the palace and around the gardens where butterflies fluttered over the delicate petals. Soldiers saluted as they passed to which they nodded in return. Ingrid followed behind Byleth dutifully before the professor came to a stop in front of a pond. There was a bench nearby and Byleth took her seat, gesturing for Ingrid to join her. This was the quieter part of the palace, away from all the bustle of soldiers and nobles alike.

There were a few fish in the pond that swam about beneath the surface. Ingrid was surprised that the Professor didn’t take the opportunity to fish at this point. They rarely got moments of calm. Byleth said nothing with her hands folded loosely in her lap as the breeze weaved through her messy hair. She didn’t look impatient, she simply waited for Ingrid to speak her mind. Ingrid gulped. 

“Forgive me if I overstep, Professor, but I need to know…” Ingrid hesitated. How does one simply ask about their dead father? She remembered the torn look on Byleth’s face that day, it was the most emotion that she had ever witnessed. How they all wished it wasn’t turmoil that Byleth had expressed so blatantly. Byleth picked up on her discomfort and inclined her head.

“Just ask.”

“I wanted to know how you can side with Edelgard knowing that she works with the people that took your father away,” Ingrid said, quickly enough that she was almost breathless but not so her words were jumbled. Byleth closed her eyes and didn’t speak for a moment. Ingrid was on the verge of apologizing, profusely. Byleth’s eyes opened once again, with no expression of malice or grief, rather thoughtfulness. As if she shared these sentiments before but had found peace with them. 

“It wasn’t Edelgard that killed him. It also wasn’t Edelgard that killed all those people at Remire nor was she the one who kidnapped Flayn.”

“But, how can you separate the two so easily?”

Byleth turned to her then. “You love her.”

It wasn’t a question. The Professor was far more perceptive than Ingrid had given her credit for. In battle she was a strategic mastermind but she never imagined that emotions were something Byleth was in tune with, given her commonplace behavior. Byleth only looked at her with the same blank expression. 

“Well, yes, but-” Ingrid stumbled, a pale blush on her cheeks. 

“I am not saying that to love a person is to ignore all of their flaws. Rather, it is to recognize their flaws, and love them still. And in some cases, forgive them. Edelgard made mistakes, Ingrid. We’re all guilty of such,” Byleth said quietly, as if she were far away somewhere, where a memory had bound her just for a moment’s breath. “But take that as you will, I’m not so familiar with those kinds of feelings.”

Ingrid didn’t know what to make of it at first. This was the first time the Professor ever spoke so much and on matters of love, no less. Once the initial shock passed, Ingrid thought it over. 

“It makes sense what you’re saying…” the knight responded, pensive. 

“Edelgard has undergone great suffering - if there’s something she isn’t telling you, it has nothing to do with your character. It has everything to do with her fear.”

“And she… told you this?” Ingrid asked almost bitterly. The Professor seemed to know something.

Byleth shook her head. “Days after my father’s death, Edelgard came to see me. In fewer words, she told me to stop wallowing and do something about it.”

“Seems a bit harsh…” Ingrid mumbled. _Edelgard can be so headstrong, sometimes._

Byleth shared a light huff of amusement. “But she was right, I was accomplishing nothing and no step closer to vengeance.”

“...and you think because she told you such things, that she had to tell herself that to move forward from whatever is in her past, right?” Ingrid finished.

Byleth nodded. “I can only assume that’s how she got through how inexplicably worried she was about you while you were down.”

Ingrid would never forget that day in the infirmary. Edelgard was so angry, yet so sad. But she still resigned herself to protecting Ingrid, even if that meant them being apart. When they had finally kissed again did they realize how useless and foolish that idea was. They needed one another. There was no other way to exist.

The knight sighed and rested her elbows on top of her knees. “I was harsh with her. I was just hurt, thinking that she didn’t trust me. The fact that she always ran away. But loving her doesn’t entitle me to her past.”

“Perhaps not, but you two are better together than apart,” Byleth said. “You two will protect each other, stubbornly. Use that. Know that it exists and use that as your strength, not as a way to wound one another.”

Ingrid could feel the tears at the corner of her eyes. They made the same mistake again. When a single tear dropped, she felt a squeeze on her shoulder, the Professor offering her what strength she needed to sort her thoughts. Ingrid sniffed and wiped at her eyes.

“Thank you, Professor.” Byleth nodded with a slight tilt to her lips.

“What will you do now?”

Ingrid stood, resolute. She rubbed at her cheek at the last bit of dampness on them. It wasn’t as if the tugging feeling in her heart just disappeared. A part of her was still terribly afraid of Edelgard running or not trusting her fully as she did for her. Only time would tell and she would give her just a bit more of that. To love is to forgive but that didn’t mean to love is to follow blindly. There were bigger battles ahead and the invasion was tomorrow - there was no guarantee they would all make it out alive. She just had to make sure she did so when Edelgard was ready, when she had enough time, she would have the chance.

“Professor, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to be by her side right now. But we will march for the monastery tomorrow, we should survive that first.”

Byleth hummed. “After that?”

“I’ll protect her. Stubbornly.”

With that she ran off, leaving Byleth who had a proud expression on her face, behind. 

* * *

Later in the afternoon, the Black Eagle Strike Force had gathered at the roundtable in the palace council room. Hubert and Byleth sat on either side of Edelgard. Ingrid had been across the large table, sitting between Sylvain and Felix. Edelgard had yet to make eye contact with her but she supposed that was to be expected. She did her best to remain focused on the task at hand. There was a large map rolled out on the table with several wooden pieces representing the imperial army placed on several points of the general outline of Garreg Mach.

Ingrid was to lead the pegasus battalions to breach the initial wall and take out the ballista on the watchtowers. She would then join the strike force on a frontal assault through the main gates of the monastery. Ingrid could feel worried eyes on her as she spotted Dorothea looking concerned for her close friend. It would mean Ingrid would be the first of the strike force to move in and perhaps the first to fall.

_Not happening,_ she thought vehemently in her mind as she looked hard at the map. The war began at this battle and she would not die there. 

“Do you have any objections to this strategy, Ingrid?” 

Hubert, cold and condescending as ever. Ingrid held back her exasperation and only nodded.

“I’m ready,” she stated, meeting his poison-green eyes head on. He seemed to huff indignantly but continued to speak to the others about their strategies and roles before rendezvousing at the gates. Ingrid listened intently, her mind on nothing else than the battle. It was easier to do that than focus on reconciling with Edelgard, at least for now. The meeting was adjourned hours later, everyone ready to get some rest in light of their march the next day. The scene seemed familiar to Ingrid as everyone filed out. But Edelgard didn’t call out to her. Instead, Ingrid lingered by the door when once again, the last Eagle departed. She was faced away from where the emperor still sat. 

“Edelgard. Let’s survive tomorrow, okay?”

Ingrid didn’t get a reply and she breathed in deeply. She reached for the door handle again, not knowing what else to say. If there was anything right to say at that moment, she didn’t find it. Her hand grasped the handle and then she heard Edelgard’s voice again after what felt like an eternity.

“I’ll tell you everything. But after we both survive tomorrow,” Edelgard said, the emperor persona in full force as if it were her crutch from what she really wanted to do. Ingrid smiled a melancholy smile but nodded regardless.

“I love you, Edelgard,” Ingrid whispered, so quietly that Edelgard almost didn’t catch it. To her, it was almost bittersweet. How much it warmed her heart but the creeping uncertainty of how long Ingrid would love her, if she would ever grow tired, held her in an ice cold grip. She wanted to say something but it didn’t feel like she deserved to. 

“You don’t have to say it back,” Ingrid continued, her voice surprisingly steady. “Just come find me, when you’re ready.”

The knight left then, the door swinging closed behind her, and once again, Edelgard watched her go. 

They left Enbarr and arrived on the monastery grounds days after.

Ingrid led the battalion while they used the cover of the clouds to approach the monastery. She felt a heavy pit in her stomach as Astra soared closer. The memories of this place filled her mind. This was where she found her friends - where they shared many laughs that echoed through the halls, moments of peace when they ate together, sorrow when their hands shook from the blood that stained them. At the monastery, between the houses, there was a genuine connection from hierarchies apart. It’s where she found love in the most unexpected way and now they were going to shed blood all over its grounds. It felt almost wrong to taint it but there was no turning back. She cast her gaze on the approaching army, almost like a swarm as they rumbled the skies with their armor shifting with every advance. On the front lines, the Black Eagle Strike Force held their formation, weapons in hand. Edelgard led them with her head held high - the memories of their fight pushed aside for now. 

It was now or never. 

Ingrid saw the two high towers with the ballistae guarding them and a line of archers that stood on the bridge that connected them. They wouldn’t stop her. With a battle cry and her lance pointed forward, the league of pegasi rushed forward from the skies, and descended on the soldiers. They weaved through waves of arrows and spun out of the way of large rocks being hurled at them at high speeds. Two pegasi battalions made their way towards the towers as ordered as Ingrid made her way towards the archers. Astra tilted on their nosedive left and right - the knight could hear the whistle of the arrows as they flew past her cheeks. She threw javelins down, piercing through some of their chests. At one point, she hopped off Astra, rolling onto the stone bridge and springing back into battle. She twirled her lance in a deadly dance, cutting her way through the path of archers, their anguished cries as they fell rang through her head as she killed more and more of them. 

Some of these soldiers supported her in training exercises and battles at the academy and this was how she repaid them. When the last guard fell with a slash across his neck, Ingrid whistled and jumped off the bridge before his body hit the ground. In a swift aerial dive, Astra caught Ingrid as the pegasi knights regrouped with the main army. Ingrid swooped in front of the strike force, armor spattered in blood that felt heavy on her shoulders.

“The watchtowers have fallen, Your Majesty,” Ingrid reported.

Edelgard seemed to blink away whatever emotions clouded over her eyes, clearing at the sight of Ingrid unharmed. Bloody but breathing. The emperor nodded and struck the hilt of her axe into the ground with a command that boomed through the battlefield.

“Black Eagle Strike Force, Imperial Army, move out!” 

And so the emperor had decreed, the war had truly begun and the Church of Seiros would be crushed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The girls are fighting, y'all. But we love them!
> 
> Comments, feedback, and kudos always appreciated! 
> 
> Follow me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/EdelgardEisner) for updates & gay chaos!


	2. The Emperor's Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s the Invasion of Garreg Mach and Ingrid faces a warrior of her past that tests her resolve as the only knight of the Empire. 
> 
> Edelgard faces her past and fears it may rip away the future she has with Ingrid before it even begins.

The battle was a vigorous one. The Seiros Knights were not a force to be reckoned with as they fought with the fire of faith, misplaced or not. But the imperial army had its advantage, ironically the goddess herself embodied in their professor and the sheer numbers of their soldiers was enough to back the church into a corner. To Ingrid’s relief, she didn’t stumble upon any former students at the encounter, most of them had probably fled to their homelands on the imminent threat of the Empire tearing through the monastery.

Another church soldier fell in a heap as Ingrid cut them down. From the corner of her eye, she sensed a dark presence that made her insides churn with unease. Into the fray leaped the Death Knight, clad in his abyssal colored armor, red eyes glowing beneath his terrifying skull-like mask. His steed looked just as menacing and deadly as she remembered. He paid no heed to the shock on the Strike Force’s faces as he struck down a group of soldiers mercilessly with a call of a Thoron spell and the whirlwind spin of his scythe.

“You’re all weak,” he said cryptically beneath his mask. 

Ingrid couldn’t help but whip her head around to give Edelgard a questioning bewildered look, the cries of soldiers falling to his blade filled the background. Edelgard parried a strike with her shield and responded with a heavy swing of her axe to another victim. 

“Ingrid, please _ , _ later,” Edelgard said exasperated as she locked into another encounter. “I  _ need _ you to trust me.” 

Ingrid didn’t have to trust her but the fact that Edelgard needed her to was enough to calm the knight enough to return to battle. With the Death Knight on the field, the defensive lines fell apart piece by piece. Soon, they were past the main gates and began converging on the stairs. It was at the top of the steps she spotted a familiar glow. The sword of legend, Thunderbrand. Ingrid nearly cursed aloud. She looked up to Catherine, they shared many training sessions where the knight had taught her so much. Even lessons that had seemed so contradictory to a knight’s existence. The way Catherine challenged her turned Ingrid’s concept of knighthood on its head. It was unfortunate now that Ingrid would have to answer that challenge with the intent to kill.

Catherine shouldered Thunderbrand, her blue eyes ice cold as she glared at Ingrid with a look of fury and disappointment. 

“Some knight you are, traitor!” Catherine barked, brandishing her blade like it was hungry to run Ingrid through.

“My loyalties are to the Emperor, just as yours are to Rhea,” Ingrid responded calmly, despite her heart beating rapidly against her ribcage. Catherine wasn’t a renowned warrior without merit, she would be a difficult opponent. But when this duel involved Edelgard’s safety, Ingrid found herself never backing down. 

“Don’t try to make it seem like we are the same, your Emperor is a monster,” Catherine spat.

Ingrid grinded her teeth and tightened her fingers on her lance in a splintering grip. Luin glowed brighter in the knights anger, blazing through her veins that would disintegrate the snow-capped mountains of Faerghus. The winters she endured were harsh, a cold so brisk it cut down to the bone and bit at her lungs with every breath. And in this moment, that’s what she wanted. To embody the unforgiving blizzard of her homeland and bring its full fury on her opponent, who dared to slander the only person that made her feel warm. 

In devastating speed and without warning, Ingrid surged forward with Astra and locked blades with Catherine’s. The Seiros knight’s eyes widened beneath the furious glow of their relics, reflecting off Ingrid’s green eyes that only swirled in a calculating calm. Her attack spoke otherwise, a strike so heavy that if Catherine were ill-prepared it would’ve easily pierced her through.

“I’ll kill you for that,” Ingrid said, voice low and nearly empty. Then the smallest spark of rage beneath her breath. “You won’t lay a hand on her.”

Catherine bared her teeth and growled, shoving Ingrid off and taking a backstep before springing back and clashing with the pegasus knight once again. Sparks flew on every collision, Astra expertly tilted to not let her rider be knocked off balance. Ingrid hadn’t experienced a battle like this before. Catherine pushed every maneuver and every form with viciousness that one misstep could very well cleave off her head. She could feel the heat of her relic as it narrowly missed her body time after time. She would land a graze across Catherine’s cheek and the warrior would respond in kind with a shallow wound of her own. It was the adrenaline and the fact that Ingrid’s blood was racing that she didn’t feel any of it at all.

Catherine had taught her to not be fooled by the body language of your opponent - that they would use this to make you think they would do a certain strike. Ingrid at first was far too proper, too washed by the traditional senses of honor and battle form. It was Ingrid’s weakness aside from Edelgard. Catherine engaged such a tactic, rushing forward and using the hooked blades of Thunderbrand to catch Ingrid’s attack mid strike. With a mighty push, Catherine successfully locked her blade on Ingrid’s lance and dragged the pegasus knight off her steed. 

Ingrid barely had time to breathe with the air knocked from her lungs when she landed on the ground before she felt the piercing pain of Thunderbrand’s point being run through her gut. Ingrid muffled the scream in the back of her throat by clamping her mouth shut - she would never give Catherine the satisfaction of her agony. From above her, Catherine hovered with a menacing look on her face twisted with victory.

“You aren’t a knight, you’re just a child. Justice will always win and we will bring down the Empire and the maniacal emperor with it,” Catherine threatened, driving the blade deeper. “Loyalty is nothing without strength and you are weak.”

Ingrid grunted in pain and stared up defiantly at Catherine despite the state she was in. It was then a memory passed over and the angry look of the Seiros knight disappeared, replaced with the serene look of a teacher - when Catherine had trained her.

_ You can't ever stop fighting. Sink your teeth into their throats, kick 'em where it hurts. Do whatever it takes to survive. _

_ You have to grit your teeth. Fight back. _

The pain was getting worse and this time Ingrid cried out, tiny droplets of blood spilling from her lips. Her eyes were heavy and she kept bouncing between darkness and the sounds of the battlefield around her. In the darkness, she saw Edelgard. A breeze was blowing through her hair but it was different. Instead of snow-white locks, they were brown, like silk and chocolate that Edelgard would never admit that she liked to avoid seeming like a child. But there was no mistake, it was her, with gentle violet eyes that were reserved to look at Ingrid so lovingly. Her voice carried through Ingrid’s teetering consciousness that roused a lightness and warmth in her heart. 

Her words felt as if they brushed the hair from her forehead down to her temple, like Edelgard would do as if she were afraid of Ingrid breaking in her fingertips but couldn’t keep herself away from her light. 

_ Fight back, my love. I need you here with me. _

Ingrid’s emerald eyes snapped open and the world came rushing back. She immediately grabbed at the blade that had nearly run her through. Her palm and fingers protested in a searing pain as she began to pull the blade away from her body, Catherine’s eyes widening in shock that the fallen knight was still able to move. Ingrid had been lying there nearly lifeless just moments before and the Seiros knight was taken off guard. With her arms shaking and jaw nearly grinded into dust, Ingrid let out a shout and managed to release the blade, throwing Catherine off balance from where she stood. In the same instant, Ingrid sprang up from the ground and with a bloody fist, made a sharp right hook that cracked against her enemy’s jaw, twisting into a spinning kick that landed square in Catherine’s solar plexus. 

Thunder Catherine had stumbled backwards, forced to use her sword to stabilize herself against the ground. Before she had recovered, she let out a cry of pain as a javelin went through her right shoulder that forced her to kneel. She shot a withering glare to where Ingrid had barely stood, using her lance as a crutch, the blood on her lips wiped and smeared on her jaw. Her wounded hand was pressed against her stomach.

“Give it up, Ingrid! You can barely stand and you had to resort to dirty tactics that you thought you were too knightly for,” Catherine mocked, yanking at the javelin and dislodging it, tossing it to the ground in a clatter. She knew that she wouldn’t be able to keep this pace, her sword arm effectively damaged. 

“Do not…,” a shaky breath, “underestimate me,” blood was spat to the ground. “Catherine.”

A familiar green glow washed over Ingrid’s form and the knight breathed a little easier. Her teammates were closeby. She twirled her lance above her head before gripping it firmly in her hand once again, slashing down to her side as she stood high once again. Her braid had come undone in the struggle, blonde hair flowing freely beneath the orange sky that burned above the flames of war.

“I am not the same knight I was but I am the warrior you will never be,” Ingrid growled. “I will not die here. You taught me to survive, to do whatever is necessary to live. And I  _ will _ live to see Edelgard as the Emperor to all of Fodlan, no matter what it takes.”

Catherine huffed a laugh as she rose from her knees, Thunderbrand now in her left hand with her right trying to support its hilt through her pain. “So be it. I’ll bury the both of you for pointing your blades at Lady Rhea.”

In that instant, Ingrid took no chances as she sprang forward and swiftly dodged an arching swing from Thunderbrand. As seasoned as Catherine was, her wound couldn’t stabilize her strike and Ingrid took advantage of it. The blonde advanced into Catherine’s guard. She used the staff end of her lance to knock Thunderbrand aside while simultaneously aiming for a downswing right on Catherine’s open neck. 

It was then a piercing, haunting roar made the monastery shake with such ferocious force it was enough to knock the two knights away from each other. Ingrid’s lance had just grazed her target. But Rhea had enough, taking to her draconic form as she let out another roar, wings outstretched and fangs bared in coated poison. The monastery was beginning to crumble and Ingrid was forced to back away from her battle to avoid falling rubble. She whistled for Astra and her steed loyally swooped in. Now above ground, Ingrid could see Catherine retreating already.

“She got away,” Ingrid whispered, disappointed. She turned her attention to Rhea and the rest of the Black Eagle Strike Force that had been nearby. They were helping those who were still able to walk retreat as far away as they could from the crumbling castle. She spotted Edelgard at the front with her shield and axe ready to guard their retreat. But Rhea was taking no prisoners. Her neck bent back and scorching white light shined by her fangs, seeming to expand with every second that went by.

“You will not be forgiven!” the dragon seethed, voice twisted between its beast and human form.

In a flash, Byleth had moved from where she stood and shoved Edelgard out of the way. Hubert reacted quickly, catching the emperor in his arms before he blinked away with her in a flash of purple light. Ingrid watched in horror as the white light overtook the green of Byleth’s eyes as Rhea let out her charged blast. The wind that whipped around her was too strong for her to see anything and Astra was taken with it. The world spun in white as Ingrid and Astra struggled to control their tumble. The sheer force had taken Ingrid off Astra once again and she felt her body hit the ground hard, before there was no ground beneath her. 

In sheer panic, she stabbed her lance blindly and managed to latch into the cliff side. She saw a flash of familiar green hair and reached out for it. She let out a grunt as the muscle in her shoulder pulled, holding the Professor tight in her hand. It was difficult, the wound on her palm wasn’t completely healed.

“P-Professor, just hold on… a little longer,” Ingrid said, struggling from the strain. She could feel their grip slipping and she felt tears in her eyes. 

“Take care of them,” Byleth responded, her face pinched at the effort it was taking for her to hold out. But hope was thin.

“Don’t talk like that! We’ll make it, we have to!” Ingrid protested, willing her muscles to just  _ please, hold on a little longer. _ The burn and exhaustion in them willed them to not respond even as she tried to clutch tighter or pull on her lance to gain leverage.

“She needs you. Protect each other.”

“Professor… please,” Ingrid replied tearfully. Byleth had a look of acceptance on her face. Though there was a trace of regret, as if she realized what she had been missing the entire time she had wandered as a mercenary alone. That her students filled an aimless void and now they would have to lead their world, without her. Just when she had finally made a choice. 

“I’m proud of you. All of you,” Byleth said. Ingrid had no more words to spare her as the grip slipped and she was grasping empty air. A soundless scream tore at her throat as Byleth fell, her fingers shaking from how tight, how hard she had tried to keep her there with them. Her tears blurred her vision completely and the Professor disappeared from sight. 

Moments later, she felt several hands grasp at her forearm and soon she was hauled up back to the earth. She kneeled on the grass with her head bowed, the shadows of her friends encircling her. Her tears continued to fall to the grass and her arms and legs shook beneath her, barely holding her body up. Her hands had gone so numb and stiffened so much she couldn’t even form a fist to tear at the ground beneath her in the flood of her anger, frustration, and devastation. The dragon was no longer roaring, long gone with their retreating forces. 

“Ingrid…”

Ingrid bit her lip so hard it bled. Her lungs burned from her cries and her body ached, almost regretting that she survived. She didn’t deserve such treatment - she failed everyone. A gloved hand cupped her cheek and tilted her gaze upwards. Ingrid winced and saw the strike force surrounding her, their armor tattered, soot and dirt caking their bodies, and wounds scattered. Exhausted but alive. 

Edelgard stroked a thumb across her cheek. Ingrid choked on another sob once she saw her eyes, the anchor of Edelgard’s presence rooting her to reality and perhaps the only thing that kept her from completely giving in. 

“Y-Your Majesty. I- I tried,” Ingrid cried, the feeling in her heart growing heavier as Edelgard’s eyes only softened. She could practically feel the sympathy radiating from all around her but she didn’t understand it. No, she couldn’t accept it. “I tried but I couldn’t,” she took a shuddering breath over her throat threatening to close. “I c-couldn’t-”

Edelgard yanked Ingrid into her arms and held the knight close. Ingrid let out a quiet gasp before melting into the embrace, holding Edelgard as tight as she could with the last reserves of her strength. She continued to cry as Edelgard buried her face into the crook of Ingrid’s neck, dropping the lightest kiss there beneath the curtain of her hair. It only made the tears worse. 

“E-Edelgard, I tried.  _ I tried _ .”

_ I couldn’t save her. _

* * *

In the end, they had won. Garreg Mach had fallen to the Empire. Count Bergliez was left in charge of organizing the occupation while the main army and the strike force returned to Enbarr to heal their wounds before they took base. Ingrid had sat quietly in a carriage on the journey back to Enbarr - her hands were far too sore to lead a pegasus back and Astra was temporarily left in the care of the stablehands at the monastery. A dim atmosphere cloaked over the Black Eagles. Search parties were dispatched to every landscape on Garreg Mach territory and the surrounding areas. Days had passed and there was no word of their Professor. The Emperor never let that deter her as they continued to rotate squadrons to widen their search. 

Ingrid stared blankly up at the ceiling of the palace’s infirmary. She was feeling better, physically. Her wounds had mostly closed with just a lingering ache. She still couldn’t hold onto anything tightly - the maneuver she pulled to remove Catherine’s sword had nearly severed her hand through and her desperate act on the cliffside tore at her muscles more than she could ever have anticipated. 

“An encounter with Catherine, you say?” Manuela had asked her, examining the wounds on her hand. 

Ingrid nodded, hissing quietly over a particularly sensitive spot that Manuela grazed over. 

“You did well to come back to us,” Manuela said kindly then halted, realizing what memories she brought up. Ingrid shook her head and gave her a shaky smile. 

“She told me to protect everyone. So I will. It’s all I can do anyway,” Ingrid said. Her lips tilted down in a frown. If only she could’ve protected everyone. After another moment of silence, Ingrid spoke again. “Professor Manuela?”

“Yes, dear?”

“Do you think… the Goddess could’ve protected the Professor?”

Manuela hummed. “It’s surely possible - the archbishop seemed to believe she embodied some goddess-like powers. I can’t say for certain.”

“There was a river far below the cliff but they haven’t found anything…” Ingrid informed regretfully.

“I see.” Manuela nodded. “Well there is one thing I can say for certain, Ingrid.” The knight perked up her head. “You are the Professor’s students after all and she taught you well. Have faith in that and you will see her again someday. Take this time to rest so you can face your battles the way she wanted you to - proud.”

Ingrid felt the words catch in her throat and she swallowed. She shouldn’t cry so much. Manuela patted the back of her hand in whatever comfort she could offer and the door opened behind them. 

“Professor Manuela?”

“Ah, Your Majesty! Come to see Ingrid, have you?” 

From the doorway, the emperor nodded. Edelgard strode into the room and took the other chair on the bedside. “Could you give us a moment?”

Manuela smiled knowingly and though Edelgard did her best to hide it, there was an air of shyness beneath Manuela’s look. The physician left the room and with a signature wink, she told the guards Her Majesty was not to be disturbed.

“How are you feeling?” Edelgard asked, taking in her state. It was a familiar sight to see Ingrid this way - though she would never enjoy it. She imagined there would be more instances like this simply because of who the warrior was. It felt like it was ages ago that Ingrid was wrapped up in bandages in an infirmary bed after the demonic beast attack. Edelgard’s eyes fell to the thin pale pink line across Ingrid’s abdomen, jagged on some of the edges where Thunderbrand had hooked into her. The emperor pursed her lips, silently vowing that  _ if she ever saw that accursed knight again she would- _

“Better. Manuela says I should make a full recovery soon, my muscles just need time to heal,” Ingrid said, fingertips pinching on the fabric of her blanket. Her voice was enough to pull Edelgard from the rampage in her mind. It was always enough.

“I’m glad you’re alright,” Edelgard said and subconsciously reached for Ingrid’s hand across the bed. Before her gloves brushed her skin, she retracted it and let it lay on the blanket in doubt. Ingrid’s brow softened and reached back, gently placing her hand on top of Edelgard’s own. 

“Are we… okay?” Edelgard asked, quietly, hyperfocusing on their hands as if it held all the reassurance and answers in its touch. Ingrid hummed in reply at first. As much as it pained her, she remembered the Professor and how they had spoken so freely before the battle. Now she wished she had more time to ask her more, to learn more from her. But for now, all there was to do was to listen and live up to those lessons.

“Yes. I’m sorry, if I had hurt you, Edelgard.”

Edelgard’s eyes widened, a protest ready on her lips. She should be the one apologizing for making Ingrid doubt their trust. It had been entirely because of her shortcomings that she wasn’t able to express what she really wanted to tell the knight. But the words caught on her tongue and Ingrid continued.

“I realized that you don’t owe me anything. I feel like I know you well enough that there’s something hurting you inside. I shouldn’t have been so foolish to think it was because you didn’t trust me.”

“Ingrid, I… how did you-”

“The Professor told me.” Ingrid smiled, the memory of the loss of their teacher prevented the full curve. “She’s rather insightful. She asked me to protect you, to use that as my strength and not as a way to hurt you. Even if she hadn’t asked, I would’ve. Even so…” Ingrid turned to the emperor once again, squeezing their hands with what little strength she had. “I’ll stand by you and you can tell me when you’re ready.”

Edelgard stayed quiet for a while seeming to bounce around thoughts in her mind. Ingrid was more than she felt that she deserved but the knight always came running to protect her, to shield her from harm even if it meant sacrificing herself. It was an endearing trait that Edelgard had loved but even more so than that, she wanted Ingrid to live. She wanted to walk by her side and live freely, with her. 

She knew what it took to do so despite how desperately afraid she was. 

“I’ll tell you everything. I promised you.”

Though her words were spoken with conviction, Ingrid could feel the slight tremble from the emperor’s hands in her own. She rubbed a soothing thumb across her knuckles and simply waited. Edelgard never forced her to do anything, she had always upheld the idea of people choosing their own paths. It was that ideal that would lead them to a brighter future, she was sure of it. 

“I will not force you,” Ingrid said, echoing a past memory. A memory that had opened up a new world for her.

Edelgard stared at her for a moment before a small smile broke on her face. She huffed a laugh beneath her breath and looked at Ingrid with a renewed light in her eyes - knowing full well that she had been forgiven long before the battle began. 

“Meet me in my quarters tonight, there’s a lot to speak about.” 

Ingrid would’ve normally blushed at such a suggestion but she figured there were darker things to come. They chatted idly for a while after Ingrid agreed to Edelgard’s request. The emperor eventually stood from her seat but not without planting a gentle kiss on Ingrid’s cheek. Her thumb grazed over where her lips had just been in an endearing caress before she departed to her duties. 

Night had eventually claimed the sky and Ingrid had been free to leave the infirmary with stern orders to rest her body. She nearly ran through the palace halls despite that and soon she was breathless in front of Edelgard’s door. She took a few moments to steady herself before she knocked and heard a quiet “come in” on the other side. Ingrid entered and closed the door gently behind her. The moonlight flowed in through the two tall arched windows and painted Edelgard’s hair in a silver shine that took the knight’s breath away. She was always beautiful - in war armor and blood on her cheek or a nightgown that made Ingrid long for the simplicity of love that she read in storybooks. 

Edelgard turned to her and smiled. Ingrid didn’t know how relieving it would feel to see it after the suffering they had endured in a matter of days. Edelgard turned from the window and sat on her bed, the midnight blue canopy fluttering. Ingrid sat down beside her and waited, her eyes turned to the sky beyond the glass. The emperor didn’t make her wait much longer.

“You asked me why I was the Flame Emperor and I couldn’t give you an answer. In truth, I convinced myself that I was protecting you by keeping secrets that I thought you weren’t ready for. When in fact, I was the one that wasn’t being fair to you,” Edelgard spoke quietly that turned into a soft tremble in her voice. “But I was afraid.”

“What are you afraid of, Edelgard?” Ingrid asked lightly.

The emperor’s head bowed, eyes on the floor. 

“That it would be impossible to love me as I really am.”

Dread sunk low into her stomach, anxiety biting at her ankles at the mere possibility of Edelgard being a heartless tyrant that connived with villains such as Solon and Kronya. But the knight would’ve never fallen for her if she didn’t see something wonderful in her. A girl that cared so much for her friends that she was willing to be alone if it meant protecting them. A girl that was crushed under a system that made love seem like a whimsical, untouchable dream. 

Ingrid loved her and she wanted to show Edelgard it was okay to accept it. She encouraged her by intertwining their fingers and squeezing their palms. Edelgard still didn’t turn to face her but she squeezed back. 

“When I was younger, after the noble houses stripped my father of his power, I was taken away and imprisoned beneath the palace along with my other siblings. They wanted to create a powerful, peerless emperor. But that goal would never be worth the price,” Edelgard said bitterly. “My siblings were murdered and I have terrors of their dying screams, begging for our father to save us. Then I would wake up and they never did. All so they could imbue the power of a Major crest. They violated our bodies and severed our flesh and none of them survived.” The words came out in a near frantic tumble, tears falling off every sound. “I was alone.”

“Edelgard…” 

The tattered girl didn’t respond and instead pulled her hand away while facing Ingrid once again. Tear tracks streaked down her face that she didn’t bother wiping away. Ingrid sat there struck as Edelgard began to remove her gloves with shaky fingers. She immediately felt like a sword shoved itself through her gut once again at what she saw. The pale skin of her hands were marred - in angry uneven lines that didn’t quite match her complexion. Some were rough from battle and others were too neat, too intentional, too meticulous. Ingrid saw that they scattered down to her wrist and it made her sick, knowing that they didn’t end. That it didn’t end for what felt like an eternity as she suffered. 

Ingrid took Edelgard’s trembling hands in her own. The skin was calloused beneath her fingertips and Ingrid would’ve never known it, never known the battle her hands endured when Edelgard’s held her like she was something precious. Like there weren’t nightmares that haunted her or that she walked with none of her family beside her. The knight felt the burn in her eyes and she couldn’t keep the tears back for Edelgard’s sake. Not when the world had been so unfair.

“Who did this to you?” Ingrid said, venom creeping onto her words. She needed to know. She needed to know who made Edelgard feel like she had to endure her demons alone for the sake of power. “Tell me.”

She averted her gaze again. “The people that bore people like Kronya and Solon. They are an ancient race that have sought to destroy the Immaculate One and its kind,” Edelgard said. “I bore two crests and they turned me into the Flame Emperor to achieve their goals. I didn’t know they would destroy Remire Village and I had no idea they were going to experiment on students to turn them into demonic beasts. If I knew, I would’ve stopped them. Had I been stronger, the Professor wouldn’t have lost her father.”

“She doesn’t blame you,” Ingrid said quickly.

“She should,” Edelgard countered just as quickly. “I associated myself with them just so I could use their power to finally free Fodlan from Rhea’s tyranny, even though I despise them. I’m playing a part to one day crush them in with my own hands but that’s cost us so much already.” She looked at their joined hands, a bitter look on her face because she knew that even without their weapons and chains to imprison her, they wounded Edelgard. So much so that she nearly walked this path without Ingrid and she couldn’t possibly imagine such a nightmare now. 

She sighed. “But I did it because so many lives were traded for my existence and I wouldn’t squander it. My family wasn’t the only one that suffered - there were others that were killed without knowing what they were dying for. For them, I wanted to create a world without meaningless sacrifice. But I was to be nothing more than a means to an end. Captain Jeralt, the Professor, none of their lives should’ve been lost for that. I shouldn’t have hurt  _ you _ over such a thing.”   
  


“Edelgard, we all knew the consequences that could come with war. We can only try to ease one another’s suffering while we fight for the future.”

Edelgard let out a hum that was akin to a humorless scoff. “I was resolved to move on without anyone. I was going to do whatever means necessary to achieve my goal, even if that meant stealing crest stones to enhance armies of beasts. But…” Ingrid felt another squeeze on her hand. “You chose to stay by my side, you all did. Then I realized I didn’t need to go to such lengths anymore. But that doesn’t make me any better of a person, either.”

“I turned my back on my kingdom, my family, and my knighthood. Back home, I’m probably seen as the worst of sinners. In truth, I think we’re all capable of horrible things, if left on our own. But Edelgard, you,” Ingrid paused, bringing Edelgard’s knuckles to her lips, brushing a kiss over a scar. “You’re not anymore. We are ready to fight by your side because we believe in you. I believe in you.”

Edelgard remained quiet for a moment. She turned her head again, her snow white hair cascading over her face. Her violet eyes were uncertain. Edelgard knew battle, she knew sacrifice, and suffering. She knew that she likely wouldn’t live long enough to enjoy their victory if they prevailed. Her heart was barred to emotions because she had no use for them. But Ingrid pulled at the old pieces of her heart that were buried beneath the palace and like the sun breathing life into a warm breeze, she yearned for it. To her, Ingrid felt like freedom. 

“...Still?” she murmured. 

Ingrid reached for her, fingertips skimming her jaw as she tilted Edelgard’s head back to her. There wasn’t a shred of doubt in Ingrid’s face. Her green eyes sparkled with sincerity that Edelgard couldn’t bear to look away. 

“More.”

Edelgard’s breath hitched in her throat and disbelief made her jaw go slack. Ingrid didn’t give her time to answer before she leaned in and sealed her lips over her own. The moment they joined it felt as though they could breathe, like a pressure that had been weighing heavily on their ribs had finally loosened its grip. Ingrid guided one of Edelgard’s bare hands to her cheek, replacing the familiar feeling of silk with a heated touch that she didn’t know she could crave. They parted for a second and Edelgard touched her forehead to Ingrid’s and sighed, before capturing her lips in another kiss, and holding Ingrid’s cheek in her palm in a quiet desperation as another tear fell. 

Ingrid felt Edelgard’s lips quiver against her own and she pulled further away. Her tears were in a flood now and she covered her lips with a scarred hand to muffle the choked sobs. Her watery eyes looked at Ingrid in a mixture of endearment and a grief that she could no longer ignore in the face of some that made her feel like she could finally let go of it. Ingrid softened and took Edelgard into a firm embrace, her lover practically curling into her. She shook with her cries into the dip of Ingrid’s collarbone and the knight let her remain, soothing touches circled over the back of her hands and in the tresses of her hair. 

Ingrid listened to the broken apologies to names she didn’t recognize and then the whimpers of Ingrid’s name as she clutched onto her tightly. Ingrid dropped another soft kiss to Edelgard’s temple and lingered there. The cries slowly died down. 

“We’ll go together, okay?” 

She felt Edelgard nod against her shoulder. Ingrid leaned back and made them both lay down against the pillows. Edelgard only moved away from her so Ingrid could pull up a sheet over their bodies. It was clear that their conversation had taken a toll on Edelgard, her eyes were red rimmed and her exhaustion was palpable. Edelgard moved in closer to Ingrid’s arms once again and tucked herself comfortably as if they were meant to be fitted together. The night was quiet and Edelgard’s breath evened out. Ingrid felt her own eyes droop and she kissed the crown of her emperor’s head.

“Goodnight, Edelgard.”

Edelgard didn’t respond at first and Ingrid assumed she was already asleep. She smiled gently and settled in more, her breathing falling in line with her lover’s. On the edge of sleep, she heard Edelgard’s soft voice again.

“Call me El.”

Ingrid blinked rapidly, trying to clear the blur of sleep away. She looked down on Edelgard who only had a rare, serene look on her face. She was asleep but there was no mistaking what Ingrid had heard. She smiled again and laughed quietly, before nodding in agreement to a dreaming Edelgard.

  
“Goodnight,  _ El. _ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!
> 
> Thanks for waiting for this update! I appreciate the support, always! A bit of an angst chapter for you guys that I hope you enjoyed! I honestly missed this pairing, A LOT. 
> 
> Feedback, kudos, and comments always welcome!


	3. Come Marching Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hubert seeks to break Ingrid’s resolve. The knight returns home & Edelgard lets her go.

Ingrid woke up the next morning to a softness that seemed almost dream-like. She could feel the rays of the sun on her face as a gentle breeze carried through the open window. She moved to stretch her limbs but froze when she felt a weight in her arms that mumbled in protest. Ingrid took a sharp intake of a breath the moment her vision cleared to a sleeping Edelgard, peaceful in her slumber as wisps of her hair draped over the curves of her porcelain cheeks.

Ingrid felt her chest grow tight. She had no idea what had come over her when tears pooled in her eyes. Perhaps, it was as simple as surviving this long to see Edelgard this way. Or being lucky enough to witness her in this light. The woman who claimed the title of being the untouchable princess or emperor was in her grasp, and Goddess, Ingrid didn’t want to let her go. Overwhelmed by emotion, Ingrid held Edelgard tighter to her chest, burying her face in the messy pile of her hair. She planted a firm kiss on the crown of her head. 

It was only then did she truly wish they weren’t at war. That they could stay like this for just a moment longer. Without the fear that when they set out for battle, one of them wouldn’t make it back alive. Ingrid knew she was stronger than most warriors in the imperial army - her equals only ranked amongst the Black Eagle Strike Force. She knew she was more resolved than most people to fight this war. It made Ingrid extremely dangerous. Others who didn’t know her chalked it up to having nothing to lose - she left her homeland and her future king behind. 

But they were wrong. She was a fierce warrior because she had everything to lose. There was nothing to go back to. There was nowhere to go, not without her.

Edelgard stirred in her sleep and her violet eyes peeped open as she rubbed at them. They widened slightly when she saw Ingrid still beside her. 

“Ingrid...” Edelgard whispered, the pads of her fingers skimming Ingrid’s cheek. There was a look of slight disbelief on her face as she blinked several times, like the emperor was trying to convince herself that this indeed wasn’t a dream at all.

Ingrid smiled. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, indeed,” Edelgard agreed and gave Ingrid a sheepish smile in return. It quickly turned into a furrow in her brow and a firm line to her pink lips.

“What is it?” Ingrid asked.

“Did I… by chance, strike you in my sleep?” Edelgard mumbled. More tresses of her hair cascaded over her face in a delicate shadow. The knight reached for them, the thin ribbons of her silky hair weaving through her fingers as she tucked them behind Edelgard’s ear. 

“No? Why would you?” she asked curiously.

Ingrid continued to gently comb through Edelgard’s hair and the emperor leaned into her touch, her lover’s actions giving her courage to admit another piece of her life that still rattled her heart.

“I have night terrors, horrible ones,” Edelgard admitted. “It’s frustrating really, that I’m still controlled by such menial things that happened in the past.”

“You don’t mean that, El,” Ingrid said gently. Edelgard looked surprised and a small sound of disbelief breathed into the morning air. It slowly dawned on her just how much she crumbled in Ingrid’s arms. The fact that in the flood of her tears, she craved to have parts of her old life live on in the embrace of the one she loved. The Flame Emperor would mock her for being so weak but she couldn’t hear the sound of its taunt over how much she loved Ingrid’s voice saying her name that way. 

“No… I don’t,” she admitted, a wordless apology in her heart. “I just wish they wouldn’t haunt me so.”

Ingrid shifted beneath the blankets as Edelgard settled again into her shoulder, the knight staring idly up at the ceiling. Her expression was blank and Edelgard traced the line of her collarbone with a question on her lips. Such expressions didn’t suit her. Ingrid’s emerald eyes seemed to clear, a small smile on her lips as she caught Edelgard’s fingers from their path, and brought them gently to her lips. She chuckled lightly at the blush that bloomed on Edelgard’s face. Even so, she didn’t speak. 

“Ingrid, is there something wrong?” Edelgard broke the silence.

The knight’s eyes closed in thought. 

“What happened to you and your family was horrible. And I swear to you that I will help you find justice for them,” Ingrid vowed, the rigidity in her voice both from frustration for Edelgard’s sake and pride. She breathed deeply. “But, don’t be ashamed of your terrors you can’t control. It was never your fault. You were so young…”

Ingrid drifted off her words, a hitch in her breath hooked onto her tone. If Edelgard didn’t know any better, she would say that Ingrid knew something about the sentiment. So she waited, as Ingrid had the night before. 

“I believe that we all have reasons for fighting this war. I have nightmares too, of the kingdom on fire and someone I loved burning along with it. I wanted to become a knight because he was too. I thought there wasn’t anything worth living for beyond being in servitude to the King.” Ingrid paused. She kissed the tips of Edelgard’s fingers once again and looked at her, softening at the sight of somber lilac. Ingrid could’ve never imagined a future like this but she was convinced it could never be brighter than her. Her lips parted again, “At least I used to think that way.”

“And what is it that you think now?” Edelgard asked quietly. 

“Well, a certain princess scolded me for such foolishness and I have self-reflected ever since,” Ingrid said wittingly with a grin that earned her a gentle shove at her side. Edelgard wore her classic scowl and Ingrid still laughed, watching her lips twitch from trying not to smile. Her laughter quieted enough for her to continue. “In my reflection, I realized that even more so than living in servitude, I wanted something else.”

Ingrid’s palm curved over the moon of Edelgard’s cheek and her thumb stroked over the morning light that painted her skin. 

“I don’t want my dream in life to be in death just so I could say I was a loyal knight. Edelgard, I want to  _ live _ . With you. Not as a knight but your equal, in all things.”

For the second time that morning, a muffled noise was pulled from Edelgard’s throat. It seemed like such a simple thing, to want to live. It was a notion that people initially wish for. For Ingrid, it was different. Dying was easy, in fact, the knights of Faerghus glorified it. A true act of loyalty and devotion. Ingrid had never looked further than that for herself - wanting to live for someone was harder. 

But wanting to live for Edelgard, she’d drag herself across the battlefield on her hands and knees if it meant that she could.

To Edelgard, it was just about everything she could hope for and more. And the former princess would’ve called her foolish, with a voice as cold and empty as the dungeon walls of the imperial palace. That the princess that longed for love and a family was buried where her siblings had died. That no future Emperor could afford such weakness, that she didn’t deserve to live when they could not. 

But Ingrid held onto her, in the suppleness of their kiss, in a sunburst of warmth that filled her caged heart. In the calloused palm that smoothed over her clothed waist, Edelgard felt whole. Ingrid had told her she loved her, again and again in the whispers between them, in a moment that could never be stolen. And Edelgard had never felt anything like it, the words tugging on her tongue and begging to be let out, like an invisible force swelling in her heart and through every scar, renewed beneath a new light. The light that was Ingrid’s love that made her feel like it was alright to exist this way. 

“I love you.”

And like the horizon had opened up for the first time, on her first flight on Astra’s wings, Ingrid was exhilarated, as if her heart had soared on the cool breeze of Edelgard’s voice. Her eyes painted like the first dawn, the sunlight glinting off the lilac sky as Edelgard gazed at her, shy but determined. Ingrid’s heart squeezed and she kissed her again.

“Again,” Ingrid asked, lips brushing on Edelgard’s with her gentle request. She could feel the breath of her laughter. A beautiful miracle that would be carried with her through the rest of her battles. 

“I love you, Ingrid.”

* * *

The main army eventually moved to occupy the newly conquered monastery. With the recent loss of the Professor, it felt foreign to tread the grounds without her leadership. But Ingrid intended to carry out what the Professor had asked of her. She just hoped she would still be proud of them, even though the sight cliffside still wounded Ingrid, the phantom ache in her hands making her fingertips twitch. 

But the Black Eagle Strike Force persevered, for what else could they do to honor her memory. Edelgard still hadn’t given up hope, regular search parties were consistently set out several times a month to scout the nearby land for any wind of her. It would always come up short but Edelgard would not be the emperor that she was if she were to give in so quickly in the face of despair. 

Ingrid couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride when she looked at her. Despite the imminent battle and chaos that would ensue with this war, the future didn’t seem as dim when Edelgard’s hands would brush against her own when they would pass through the monastery with their own duties. She would hide a secret smile on her lips when she would catch Edelgard looking at her discreetly for just a bit too long.

Perhaps not so secret as she thought, however.

“I see you and Edelgard have made up,” a sweet voice said behind Ingrid while she was cleaning her lance. The knight huffed and rolled her eyes to mentally prepare herself before turning her gaze to Dorothea. The songstress stood there with her signature teasing smile.

“Who said we were fighting?” Ingrid retorted, running her finger on her lance to test the blade.

Dorothea plopped down beside her with a hum of borderline amusement. Ingrid valued Dorothea’s friendship immensely, she was insightful when she wanted to be and extremely kind. The heart for her friends knew no boundaries and for that, Ingrid admired. The knight simply wondered why the Goddess would grace her with such a best friend that would prod at her nerves. She thought Sylvain was enough.

“You two can’t lie to your best friend, sweetie,” Dorothea chuckled. Ingrid sighed and set her lance aside. 

“If you must know Dorothea, yes, we’re fine. More than fine, really,” Ingrid admitted, leaning back on her palms on the seat. 

“More than fine, eh?” Dorothea prodded, poking at the side of Ingrid’s thigh. Ingrid didn’t bother moving away from it, instead she tilted her head skyward and looked at the clouds passing through. An unknown smile curved over her lips that made Dorothea even more curious.

“She told me she loved me.” 

The onslaught of squeals and gushing for gossip didn’t come as Ingrid had expected. The knight inclined her head towards the songstress and all she was greeted with was a happy smile. 

“I’m glad she finally told you,” Dorothea mused, her hand patting Ingrid’s knee. 

“Did she tell you first?” Ingrid asked with a brow raised.

“Not in not so many words. As I said before, you two can’t hide anything from me. You must’ve known that she loved you, Ingrid. You’d be crazy to not see it.”

Ingrid laughed at that, this time leaning forward and putting her cheek in her palm, balanced on her knee. 

“I knew. I never wanted to push her to what she wasn’t ready to say and she’s shown me in different ways. But, it’s just nice to hear her say it.”

“You’re a lovesick fool. Both of you.”

That earned the songstress a shove at her shoulder and beneath the sun, the two friends were at peace with laughter carried on the wind.

It didn’t last for long though, as a dark figure approached the two of them on the training grounds. Ingrid stood from her seat to greet him, albeit with confusion on her face. Hubert wasn’t one for direct interactions with the knight, she knew he had been apprehensive of her. He trusted no one but himself to keep Edelgard safe. For Edelgard’s sake, Ingrid held her tongue every time she would catch him analyzing her.

“Ingrid, there’s a letter for you.”

That made Ingrid even more confused, Hubert personally delivering her letters now? He procured an envelope in his gloved hands and it was then Ingrid understood. On the pale surface there was a wax seal of her family’s crest, in blue. 

“My father sent this,” Ingrid said without taking it. “What game are you trying to play here, Hubert?”

Hubert chuckled darkly. “A test of loyalties.”

“You have a lot of nerve, you know that,” Ingrid muttered as she snatched the letter from his hands. He watched with a vulture-like gaze and she paid him no mind as she unfolded the letter. She knew he was testing her, hoping that emotions would twist at her soul to prove whatever conceived image he had of her - a setback to the Emperor and disposable. 

Ingrid read her father’s scrawl on the parchment. 

_ Ingrid, _

_ Return home at once. Your mother and I are beside ourselves with worry. News of the fall of Garreg Mach has reached the kingdom - Prince Dimitri says you, Felix, and Sylvain have sided with the Empire. I’ve never known you to be so foolish. That tyrannical emperor seeks to destroy all that is sacred, the Goddess herself! You must realize this. Glenn would not wish for you to act this way and you are dishonoring his memory the longer you remain there. It is your duty to the King to serve by his side, even through this senseless war. _

_ Return home to your family, Ingrid. It’s where you belong. _

Long after she had finished, Ingrid remained still. The final sentence of her father’s letter stared back at her. She had no doubts of where she belonged. And yet…

“Ingrid, are you okay? What did your father say?” Dorothea asked gently from over her shoulder.

“He wants me to come home,” the knight replied, voice steady, unfeeling. With a flick of her wrist, she handed over the letter to Dorothea who glanced at it briefly. A frown was on her face but Ingrid was facing Hubert’s challenging expression instead.

“So what will it be, Ingrid? Will you betray the emperor over some sob story from your father? As you are well aware, this is war, after all. And the Empire has no room for such  _ weak resolve _ .”

Ingrid felt her jaw grind. Hubert had meant to lash at her, his words rolling off his silver tongue to the sharp point of a poison-soaked dagger. His words would strike at the heart then the venom would spread to every nerve of the body, the pain and the ache lingering to weaken those he viewed as such. 

“Hubie, don’t talk to Ingrid that way!”

“This is none of your concern, Miss Arnault. It is my duty to protect Lady Edelgard and I will test those that must be tested, as I so please.”

Ingrid crossed her arms, looking overall unimpressed from Hubert’s bravado. 

“So what I’m hearing is, being nearly cut through by a demonic beast, turning my back on the Church of Seiros and pointing my lance at the Immaculate One herself, and being run through by Thunderbrand, isn’t enough for you to prove that I have no interest in leaving the Emperor’s side? Better yet, Hubert, I have nothing to prove to  _ you _ of all people. What matters is Edelgard’s word and in the end, you wouldn’t question it.”

“I will  _ not _ have you speak of her so casually as if you know-”

“I know  _ everything,  _ Marquis Vestra,” Ingrid cut him off. Hubert narrowed his eyes dangerously at her but whatever he found in her hardened gaze seemed to boggle him, just slightly.  _ So he’s figured it out. _

Ingrid brushed past him and made her way for the doors with Dorothea calling after her. 

“Ingrid, where are you-”

The tail end of Dorothea’s call was muffled as the doors slammed shut behind her.

* * *

“Your Majesty, I need to speak with you.”

Edelgard had looked up from the round table, a map was rolled out with several pieces that were placed on different points. Edelgard looked at Ingrid curiously and nodded, turning her attention to the guards at the door.

“Leave us.”

The guards bowed in her direction before they shuffled away. Edelgard crossed the room and took Ingrid’s hand in her own, her thumb swiped over the back of her knuckles.

“Has something happened?” Edelgard asked, the distress on Ingrid’s face wasn’t lost on her.

“Hubert thought it fitting to hand deliver me a letter from my father to test my loyalty,” Ingrid quipped. “He doesn’t trust me for Goddess knows why.”

“Hubert doesn’t trust many people, Ingrid. Especially when it comes to me, unfortunately. But I assure you, nothing he could say to me would change my mind about you,” Edelgard emphasized, squeezing their joined hands. Ingrid only nodded, Edelgard’s conviction calming her heart. “But there’s something else isn’t there?”

Ingrid sighed as she straightened, hoping that it would give her the strength to say it. 

“El, I have to go see my father.”

Edelgard didn’t say a word in response, if anything she didn’t even react. Ingrid couldn’t read her and that made the knight nervous and so she burst forth with all the reasoning she could come up with. 

“I have to make him see reason, it’s possible that he…” Ingrid sighed again, her head dipping in slight disappointment. “No. I know in my heart that he wouldn’t listen, but still. I have to try to show him that this future,  _ our future, _ is what’s best for everyone including our family. And I swear I’m not running away, I would never do such a thing, I just need to-”

A gloved finger pressed over her lips and Ingrid’s words were stopped in their tracks. Ingrid didn’t find anger or suspicion in Edelgard’s gaze. Rather it was a look of acceptance, as if the Emperor had known what Ingrid needed to do the moment she mentioned the letter.

“I know, it’s alright. You need to go, my heart. I have no doubts about your character,” Edelgard assured her, her finger falling away only to cup the knight’s jaw. Just when Ingrid thought she couldn’t love this woman anymore than she already did. Ingrid rested her hand on the back of Edelgard’s, pressing the warmth into her cheek. 

“I’ll return in a few days time, I promise,” Ingrid whispered in the little space between them.

“Do you need anyone to accompany you?” Edelgard asked. She knew Ingrid was strong enough on her own. But the journey to the kingdom when the war had just begun had left her uneasy. Though she wouldn’t admit it, in fear that she would insult the knight’s abilities. 

“No, they’re needed here. Someone has to keep you in line,” Ingrid said lightly, a kiss falling on Edelgard’s brow. The emperor scrunched her nose and Ingrid laughed, her worries easing away. “Astra and I will set out tonight, then.” 

Edelgard nodded and stepped into the knight’s embrace. Ingrid held onto her tightly, trying to ignore the heavy feeling in her heart. She had gone weeks without seeing or speaking to Edelgard, a few days was hardly comparable. Though, having a taste of this happiness, she could barely part from it. 

For her family, she must. Just once more. 

* * *

The moon eventually claimed the sky and the night was quiet as the emperor and her knight lingered in the stables. Ingrid had finished tightening her pack to Astra’s saddle, patting it and the pegasus’ neck. Astra’s head bowed into Edelgard’s hands, the emperor whispering quiet words beneath her breath as she rested her forehead against her snout. The pegasus gave a huff through her nostrils and her chest puffed in pride like she had understood. Ingrid smiled softly at their interaction.

Edelgard turned to her and spoke quietly, yet firmly.

“Return to me in one piece, that’s an order.” 

Ingrid held her smile and stepped forward, her gauntlet curving over the back of Edelgard’s head and pulling her in for another kiss. It was chaste, purposely so, as to not give into the desire to just remain there. Edelgard had pulled away first and pushed at the knight’s shoulder, giving her the courage she needed before she changed her mind.

Ingrid bowed to her, if not to pull a smile from her lover before she set out.

“Of course, Your Majesty.”

She had mounted Astra in a fluid motion and took flight into the cold night, Edelgard’s gaze burning at her back until she had disappeared high above the clouds. The journey was long and they would rest in obscure locations in the forest to rest. She knew she was close to Galatea territory with the frigid winds that hugged her in her sleep even around the campfire. She had to carefully avoid the towns to not be sighted from the Kingdom’s forces that were spread throughout. On the glances she did get, she could see the amount of weapons being crafted and stacked, the villagers taking refuge deep into their homes and hardly emerging as knight’s patrolled the streets. There were barricades on the road and makeshift watchtowers. Ingrid would hold her cold breath as they hovered in obscurity in the thick clouds, her knuckles tightening on the reins, anticipating the call of arrows to hail on her.

They never did and when she landed on her family’s land close to another dusk, she felt exhausted. When she slid off Astra, she was shaking and it wasn’t because of the cold. She inhaled the brisk air through her nose and looked around, the soil as poor as she remembered. As a noble house, her home stood apart from the surrounding ones, its wood and stone meant to stand the frigid winters. It was surrounded by iron gates, makeshift shields with the coat of arms of Faerghus molded into its plate were welded to the bars on every other segment. 

She approached the threshold to her home and was greeted by two knights. Ingrid felt her stomach twist as she pulled her hooded cloak down to reveal her face. They immediately recognized her and bowed.

“Lady Ingrid, you’ve returned! Please, this way, your father has been waiting!”

Ingrid hid her wince as she followed their lead. She barely had time to take a steadying breath before the doors were opened and she was in her parents’ sights. 

“Father… Mother…” she whispered as they rushed her with an embrace. Her arms felt weak at their sides, laying heavy beside her like stone. Her mother was the first to pull away, taking Ingrid’s cheeks in her cold hands and examining her head to toe, the worry brimming in her green eyes. 

“Darling, we’re so glad you’re safe,” her mother expressed, her hands sliding down the take Ingrid’s hand between her palms and squeezing.

“Yes, I feared that my letter wouldn’t reach you. I’m happy to see you’ve come to your senses. Where are Felix and Sylvain? Have they returned with you as well?” Count Galatea asked.

Ingrid felt her head spin at the onslaught. There was so much hope in their eyes that it felt cruel to crush it with her own hands. But war demanded her to be strong, she had come this far. This was the true test of her loyalty. 

She shook her head. “No, they’re not here. I think you both need to sit down.”

They looked at her confused but acquiesced, taking seats at their dining table. Ingrid moved to the opposite side but she didn’t sit. 

“Well, when will they return? I know Rodrigue and Sylvain’s father are concerned for their sons. I mean, especially with that whole ordeal with their eldest child, his parents would certainly sleep better if he was safe in the kingdom,” her mother mused.

Ingrid’s brow twitched. “Are you speaking of Miklan?”

“Yes, that’s his name. Such a shame really.”

“Did you know Sylvain was forced to kill his own brother because his family had driven him away for not having a Crest? That his brother was consumed by a relic and turned to a beast?  _ That _ ordeal?” Ingrid said, the bitterness creeping into her words with each passing second. 

Ingrid remembered the glowing red eyes, the terrifying beast with rows of teeth that could shred anything in its path. The roar that cut into the brewing storm that made every one of the Black Eagles stop in their tracks, haunted. She remembered Miklan’s anguish too, his hatred for his younger brother for his crest, and how he had been driven to cruelty. He was by no means innocent but Ingrid wondered had she been born without one, if her fate would’ve been the same? 

“He was a bandit and a disgrace to the Kingdom, Ingrid,” her father replied firmly, his arms crossed over his chest. 

“The Kingdom is not perfect, Father. Neither are the ways of Fódlan and I will no longer pretend that it is. That’s why I’m here,” Ingrid retorted, putting her weight in her heels to stand firm.

“What are you saying?” her mother pressed, the pitch of her voice rising with her disbelief, the fear of what she wished wasn’t true.

“I have sided with the Empire and my loyalties are to Emperor Edelgard. I believe in the future she is trying to achieve for this land and in my heart, I know this would be better for our family. For all families.” 

The words parted from her lips easily without a shred of doubt. She took in the shock on their faces, their bodies going stock still. Her father rose from his seat with enough force that knocked his chair backwards. Ingrid didn’t flinch when the wood collided with the floor.

“Have you lost your mind?! The Empire is an enemy of the church, the Goddess herself! What kind of future could that crazed emperor possibly bring with defying our creator?”

“The Church has lied to us all. The archbishop is a dragon, a full-fledged beast that has enslaved humankind against one another, an entire system built on power imbalance. Father, can’t you see it? The life we could have if our happiness, our successes, didn’t rely on something menial like Crests?” Her voice was rising, exasperated. 

“And starting a war, spilling blood is the answer?”

“If that’s what makes people see the truth, so be it. Countless lives have suffered and their blood has been spilt for centuries because of the Crest system - my friends that don’t bear crests are shunned their entire lives and they are kind, they are brave, they are worthy! And myself, who bears a crest, like so many others, are forced into these unrealistic expectations of sacrificing our happiness and for  _ what?”  _ Ingrid seethed, the memory of Edelgard crying in her arms, her scars scattered on her skin igniting her heart. 

Then the faces of her friends fell in line. Sylvain and the one tear that fell down his cheek when his lance drove through Miklan’s consumed heart, how the relic had glowed with power while he was powerless to prevent his cruel fate. Felix’s eyes and how they looked so much like Glenn’s, his pursuit for strength unmatched, so that maybe no one else he loved would die in vain. The Black Eagles, Dorothea so sweet in her kindness like spring, but so twisted in her self-worth. Caspar, driving himself to exhaustion so he could stand on his own two feet. The moments Bernadetta would instantly brighten when someone admired her crafting talent, where it had been seen as useless under a noble roof. 

Crests could never stand next to all they had given her. Her nails dug into her palm, drawing blood to keep the tears from spilling. “Who prospers from  _ that _ , Father? Why don’t our own actions, our own character, determine how we live?”

“You walk a fine line, you foolish girl! You would be so selfish to sacrifice your family’s future?”

“And you would be so selfish to see me unhappy with someone I don’t love if it meant carrying on our bloodline!” Ingrid fired back, the shout reverberating off the walls. Her palms slammed on the table, making the silverware rattle. A voice in her mind told her to calm down, that she was not making them see reason this way. But another part of her tore at her to let it all out, that her own parents’ couldn’t be so blind to what they had put her through. The table cloth crumpled beneath her fist. 

She shouldn’t beg them to understand but she loved them. 

“I’m trying to make you see that we could be free from these shackles. That you would see the brighter side of not being tied to traditions and truly be happy. That’s what I want. Our land is poor and our only way out is to carry on our bloodline? When you and mother have worked so hard? Are you so satisfied with that position?”

Her mother had tears streaming down her face, a hand clamped over her mouth to stifle her cries. Her father’s lips pressed into a firm line, his shoulders rigid as he circled the table and stepped into Ingrid’s space. Ingrid would not back down, not now, and not ever again.

His words struck to wound her. “And what of Glenn and his sacrifice? The Ingrid we know would never act this way. Have you lost all your sense of loyalty?”

And in that moment, in his eyes she could see what her heart already knew. That this wasn’t about loyalty to begin with, it was a tactic to ignore her own needs under the Kingdom’s ideal image of their people. That the threat of dishonor manifested into every drive to be perfect, to be the representative of her house that anyone could be proud of. 

Ingrid realized that, no, loyalty didn’t equal love. It didn’t equal happiness. Those feelings, those bonds, are what brought devotion. That when those feelings are the foundation, it could only bring prosperity and people could flourish. The memory was fuzzy but there was no mistake, in the flames of a dying kingdom, Glenn left this world with regret in his heart. 

She wondered if she just denied it all of these years, that if she didn’t face it, the road would be far less painful one. 

The thought didn’t truly matter because the cold in her father’s eyes needled at her skin. That the moment she decided to embrace what made her happy, he sought to hurt her. 

“I love you, Father,” she uttered through the heavy grasp on her heart. A tear fell from her face. One dropped, then another, until it flooded in rivers without sound. It wasn’t out of the guilt that he wanted to lash her with.

She choked on a quiet sob - she knew she was going to lose them both. 

Just how much more would the Goddess take from her? 

Ingrid swallowed, wiping her tears with her glove. “I believe Glenn would be proud of me for walking my own path. I will walk it with or without you, Father. I was hoping we could go together,” Ingrid said bitterly, the disappointment made it hard to breathe. She really had hoped. “I knew it in my heart that we couldn’t. But I wanted to try.”

“Why did you even return if you weren’t going to stay?” her mother pleaded to understand.

Ingrid frowned. “Because Edelgard told me to come.”

The room was heavy, silent. Her mother’s eyes were wide and her father was struck with a mixture of disbelief and confusion. 

“And why would the Emperor send one of her own soldiers to what she considers enemy territory?” he asked suspiciously. 

The knight thought of Edelgard, how she had trusted her with all the shadows in her past and though she had lost her entire family by cruel fate, she knew Ingrid couldn’t just dispose of her own. Edelgard had let her go, so rooted in their love that Ingrid would return.

Ingrid smiled for the first time that night, more so in irony than elation.

“She knew I needed my mother and father,” Ingrid said more so to herself, but it wasn’t lost on her parents’ ears. They had no other words for her, nothing more needed to be said. It was clear to Ingrid that this was over. She wasn’t the daughter that they needed anymore. 

Ingrid’s bangs fell over her eyes as she turned on her heel towards the door. 

“Stay safe,” she whispered to them as they watched her go without a fight. There wasn’t a point in saying goodbye for there wasn’t anything good about it. Ingrid flew away from the rift between them, a scar on her heart that would burn for a long time to come. When she was high in the clouds again, the moon and Astra were the only beings that heard her break apart, her cries knocking on heaven’s doors. 

Her grief would go unanswered. Only the wind embraced her on the tumultuous journey home. Once at the foot of Garreg Mach, she stopped. The sun was just rising above the towers and she could see the flags and banners of the Adrestian Empire fluttering in the breeze. Astra had wandered over to the river, taking a drink as the water floated gently past. Ingrid kneeled by the river bed and looked at herself. Her eyes looked tired, her cheeks a mix of alabaster and rose from the cold altitude they had just descended from. Her hair was strewn in several directions, her braid loose from its band. Her green eyes shone on the water’s mirror and she remembered her mother again and the blonde of her father’s hair. 

From her waist, in a moment’s breath, she unsheathed a shortsword and took hold of her braid, placing the blade against it by the base of her neck. She closed her eyes, stopped, and breathed in through her nose, exhaling through her lips in a cycle. When her eyes opened again, her reflection was determined and with a powerful swipe, she severed her hair. The weight fell away and for a split second, she breathed easier. She combed her fingers through her hair as she continued to stare into the water. The bundle of her braid was carried down the river and with it, the Knight of Faerghus that had clung to her for an eternity. 

She returned to the monastery grounds, different from how she departed. The gatekeepers stopped her at first until another had scolded them,  _ you fools, that’s the Emperor’s knight, let her through! _

Ingrid would’ve laughed, normally she would have blushed under their scrutiny and the quick apologies. She nodded wordlessly to them and made her way to the stables. The monastery was still quiet, the army not quite awake to greet the morning light. She bid Astra to rest and left, her feeting carrying her to what used to be the cardinal room. 

“Ingrid?”

The knight hadn’t known she was in a haze until the world came back into focus. She was greeted by Edelgard who had been alone, as if she had been waiting this whole time. Two weeks apart felt like an eternity and Ingrid hadn’t known just how empty she had felt up until then. 

“El…” Ingrid whispered and Edelgard crossed the room quickly, catching the knight in her arms as she sank to her knees. Like an unforgiving tide, grief had crashed on her shoulders once again, that left Ingrid shaking as it pulled her into the abyss of her loss. Her tears burned and her sobs clawed at her throat, her dry, cracked hands clutching onto Edelgard like a lifeline to keep her afloat. 

Edelgard was no stranger to mourning and she needn’t ask what had happened. She had hoped that maybe, just maybe, her family would be fortunate enough to see Ingrid as she truly was. A worthwhile woman that anyone would be graced to know, let alone love. Edelgard whispered small comforts and brushed through Ingrid’s now short hair with tender caresses. Her fingers moved from the crown of her head, down the back of her neck, and eventually curved over her jaw. Edelgard tilted Ingrid to look at her once her cries had slowed.

Her heart shattered at the sight and for a moment her anger could raze the entire countryside to ash. But instead, she leaned into Ingrid and pressed her lips to her temple, breathing in the sun that lingered in her hair. She had missed her dearly and simply having her back in her arms was enough to quiet her vengeful heart. 

“You’re home,” Edelgard whispered, both in relief and comfort.

There was a whimper and more tears, but a huff of laughter because despite it all, there was happiness in that space in the world set aside for them. She pushed her hair back and wiped her tears away stubbornly, sniffling as she went. Edelgard stayed close beside her, ready to hold her together if she had asked. This time, Ingrid took Edelgard into an embrace and they lingered on the stone floor without saying a word, their love weaving in the silence to mend the void they felt while apart. Ingrid slid her hands down Edelgard’s arms and took her hand between her palms, kissing her knuckles, and laying her forehead against it as though she were praying in the cathedral. 

Edelgard was no god, she was messy, she was broken and held in the same moment in time, like shattered porcelain bound in gold. But she was the closest thing to heaven Ingrid had ever touched. 

“I’m home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy almost New Year! Did I worry you with the summary of this chapter?
> 
> Thanks for waiting on this - I find that I hibernate quite a bit. I hope it was worth the wait for you all! I know this chapter was more like a character study but I think it's extremely important to see Ingrid's thought process and in reality, how and why she sided with the Empire (for other reasons that are not being gay for Edelgard). 
> 
> Kudos, feedback, comments always always appreciated! <3


	4. Matters of the Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ingrid wished her heart was a little stronger, just so Edelgard wouldn’t hear how embarrassingly fast it was thrumming in her chest. No amount of training could prepare her for the love she felt or the losses the war would continue to lay at her feet.
> 
> mild nsfw.

Despite the recent loss of her family, it didn’t take long for Ingrid to come back to her routine. Though the ache still lingered in her heart, she buried herself in the fact that she was home and the Empire was where she belonged. She remembered the chivalric tales she used to read and she could practically scoff at it now as well as herself for romanticizing such agonizing things. War didn’t stop for anyone, merciless in what it took, and in what it continued to take. 

The Professor, her parents, and a dear childhood friend. She still wondered what fate would become of those around her. She thought of Edelgard and immediately shook the painful idea away.

Ingrid soon realized that the heaviness in her heart wouldn’t subside or get easier to live with, it would just be a matter of learning how to exist with it. She swung an iron lance in the air, the weight of it grounding her to the earth as she shifted between stances. It was easier to fight physical battles, to fight through wear and tear of her body. Frankly, she would rather be gouged through by a demonic beast again.

But for Edelgard, she would learn to be okay with it.

The door to the training hall opened in a heavy swing and Ingrid brought herself to a pause. She combed through the sweat in her now short hair as she turned to greet the new presence.

“Felix,” she called out. “Everything okay?”

He walked up to her in meaningful strides with the usual straightforward look on his face. The next words out of his mouth surprised the knight.

“I heard you went home.”

Ingrid blinked and she lowered her lance to the side. She settled her free hand on her hip and regarded Felix with a curious look. She didn’t necessarily keep it a secret but why he was asking was another mystery in its entirety. 

“I did,” she replied, the tilt in her voice a questioning one. “I’m sure you can imagine how successful I was with my endeavor.”

“Even I could’ve told you that,” Felix sighed, crossing his arms.

Ingrid shrugged. “Well, it can’t be helped now, huh?”

Felix stared at her and even Ingrid thought the expression was strange. 

“And what about now? Is your mind clear of distractions?”

_ Are you okay? _ It’s unspoken and Ingrid lets out a wry laugh because even after all of these years, he was still horrible at friendship. 

“Hardly. It’s only been a few days. But,” Ingrid hummed, twirling her lance a few times between her fingertips. “My choice remains the same. I’ll see it through to the end. I’ll be counting on you too, Felix. Cover my blind and stupid side, as you once said.”

Felix immediately rolled his eyes at the jab but didn’t make a move to leave as he usually did when he was simply done talking about things. Instead he walked over to the weapon rack and unhooked an iron sword. He took a stance opposite of Ingrid with his blade raised and Ingrid knew from the look in his eye what he wanted.

She met his blade with her lance wordlessly, the metal clinking before they jumped backwards, and clashed in full force. 

Perhaps, for Felix as well, it was easier to deal with physical battles and training, than matters of the heart. 

* * *

“Another spar with Felix?”

Ingrid perked her head up towards the doorway of her room, just pulling a fresh tunic over her head before being greeted with the sight of Edelgard. There was a question on her lips, about the Emperor being rather early to visit from her duties, but they died immediately in her throat. 

Ingrid felt her jaw go slack as her eyes wandered Edelgard’s new attire, a regalia flowing in crimson red and lined with glimmering gold. The bodice hugged every delicate curve of her waist and chest that made Ingrid swallow audibly. Then there were the gauntlets made of armor, solid and steeled, and if Ingrid weren’t completely stunned to her spot, she might’ve kneeled on the same floor. 

“Wow…” Ingrid mumbled and Edelgard blushed lightly in response. The Emperor closed the door lightly behind her and stepped further into the room, Ingrid still silent and dazed as Edelgard’s fingers brushed against her jaw to tilt her head upwards by her chin.

In that moment, Ingrid wishes her heart was a little stronger, just so Edelgard wouldn’t hear how embarrassingly fast it was thrumming in her chest. 

“I assume that you like it,” Edelgard said amusedly, but Ingrid doesn’t miss the flash of shyness in there. 

Ingrid blinked several times and caught Edelgard’s hand, kissing the back of her knuckles. “Allow me to be plain.”

Edelgard tilted her head in response, a cute furrow in her brow, and nodded slowly.

“You look fucking beautiful, El,” Ingrid said, breathlessly.

The rosy blush burned brighter on the Emperor’s cheek as she averted her gaze. The look isn’t an expression Ingrid saw often but something she inexplicably adored.

“I-I’m glad you think so.”

She kissed the back of Edelgard’s hand again and patted the seat on the bed beside her. Edelgard sat next to her and Ingrid kissed the crown of her snow hair, loose from its usual purple ribbons, falling like woven stars. Edelgard leaned into her side and rested there, enjoying the quiet and peaceful space. 

“So, I take it this will be the new image of our fearless leader?” Ingrid asked aloud, their fingers slotting together in a perfect grip. Edelgard laughed into her shoulder, slightly shoving at it immediately after.

“Well, if it inspires you so, my love, then I can say it has the desired effect,” Edelgard fired back cheekily and it’s a refreshing feeling in Ingrid’s heart.

“It does. Very much so,” Ingrid said with a light laugh. A pause filled the air, the sunlight drifting over the windows. “I hope we can stay this way for many years to come.”

A kiss pressed to the curve of the knight’s cheek. It almost reminded Ingrid of the kind of love they had during their academy days, though not far, but so different now. From student and princess, to a knight and the emperor, sitting in Ingrid’s bedroom in a space where their love first bloomed. 

“I hope so too.”

They both know it’s impossible to remain unchanged in the face of war. But they cling to the idea and each other, nonetheless.

* * *

Years had passed since the war began. The skies were cloudy as Astra and Ingrid soared through them to a vast field that held bittersweet memories in grassy blades. There they were again, clashing not for some silly prize or the honor of their houses, but for the fate of their world. Ingrid could see the armies that approached and felt a twist in her stomach as she saw the flags of Faerghus blues and silvers. She hadn’t seen the new king since the end of their academy days. The loss of her own family had dulled but she was on yet another cusp of a new challenge, and Ingrid admitted to herself that she was still nervous for days like these. Days where they would all face ghosts of their past. 

Even from the high skies she could see the familiar light of a Hero’s Relic in his hands, burning as brightly as the anger in the snarl on his face. It was an echo of the prince she knew. Or maybe it was there all along and she wished not to see it.

The imperial army stopped their advance and Ingrid carefully monitored the field, glancing at Edelgard at the head of the army. Ingrid didn’t know if she would ever get used to how Edelgard looked in battle: regal, dressed in crimson, standing with a strength that could strike through the earth. She was dangerously beautiful, even if blood smeared on her skin that Ingrid wiped away with gentle fingers. She would cradle the emperor’s cheek in her armored hands as if she held the entire world. 

Edelgard would smile at her. Ingrid noticed over the years it seemed to dim from the weight of their battles. But it didn’t stop her from doing everything in her power so it wouldn’t disappear completely. Edelgard was the light, the guide to a new future, and Ingrid would tear down the skies if it would make her happy. If Edelgard could keep some part of herself that was a hopeful young girl with dreams of romance and a normal life. 

“I love you,” Ingrid would whisper, letting Edelgard’s fingers slip from her grasp as she mounted Astra. 

Edelgard’s lips would brush over her knuckles in return. “Come home safe, my knight.” 

Ingrid would smile at her and take off to scout the battlefield with a warm feeling in her heart.  _ Home.  _ And Edelgard would watch her go as she disappeared into the clouds.

Which led to where they were now, Gronder Field. Ingrid held her breath and waited. The imperial mages readied their fire spells and launched, the whole field going ablaze as soldiers fell left and right in the heap. The smell of flame and smoke made Ingrid’s grip on the reins tighten. But regardless, she let out a war cry and brought down the full force of the Imperial pegasi knights on the encroaching soldiers. Astra dodged through the onslaught of arrows, Ingrid piercing through lines of soldiers with spearhead strikes and soaring javelins. As a team, they weaved a web of blood, the fallen tied in its grasp.

She held back the bile in her throat, watching soldiers of her homeland fall. She tried her best not to look at their faces and she struck them down. It reminded her so much of the tragedy. 

_ You’re not there anymore. You’re not there. _

To make matters worse, the tides of soldiers split and the King made his advance. Ingrid looked quickly behind her, the Emperor was holding her ground, cleaving her path in a deadly dance. Dorothea and Petra were nearby her, sniping down any air attacks that tried to break their lines. Ingrid made a decision then as she swooped in Dimitri’s path, saying nothing as she readied her lance by her side.

Dimitri looked at her, a grave ferocity in his jaw. “Get out of my sight, Ingrid. I have no business with you,” he growled. 

Ingrid made no moves to listen. “This ends now, Dimitri. You will go no further!” 

“You abandon your home and now you think you have the right to stop me? I will cut you down and deliver your head at Edelgard’s feet!”

Ingrid parried his jumping strike, shoving him off with a growl. They locked in a ferocious dance that Ingrid could feel her bones shake as she met him blow for blow. He was bloodthirsty, teeth practically glinting like a hungry wolf that had been starved. There was nothing familiar about him and that almost made it easier to fight him.

Almost.

She met his mid strike with a full-force one, the sudden halt in his momentum throwing his lance backwards. It was the perfect opening to pierce right through his open chest. She blinked and she saw her childhood friend, a gentle boy with kind eyes that had held her when she refused to come out of her room. She then hesitated before driving her lance forward. Her lance was caught in his hand before it struck fully and she was yanked off Astra’s back, his lance cutting her on a downward slash as she was tossed to the side. 

Ingrid grunted in pain as she landed hard on the ground, her side burning from the gouged wound. She put a shaky hand over it, the blood immediately flooding her fingers. She gritted her teeth and rose up on an elbow, sweat coating her brow as she struggled and looked up at him. 

He looked down on her, empty.

_ He’s gone. _

Ingrid’s fist twisted the grass as her heart squeezed with it. Her breath was shallow as she tried to steady herself through the pain.

“Worthless,” he spat. “And now you die.”

His lance rose, ready to keep on his word to run her through. Ingrid heard the familiar rush of armored footsteps and she breathed out a sigh of relief as she heard the clang of Dimitri’s lance meet a heavy shield.

“You  _ bastard.”  _

Edelgard shoved Dimitri backwards and caught his forearm with a hammer strike. Dimitri shouted in pain and his lance arm became too weak to hold his weapon. Ingrid couldn’t see it from her heap on the battlefield but Edelgard’s eyes were hardened, violet gaze withering. Dimitri was bloodied, the grass beneath him soaked but he still stood as if he were ready to fight until his body gave out, ready to drown in the blood of his allies and enemies if it meant killing Edelgard. 

“Monster,” he snarled. “You’ve soaked this land in blood and corpses, and for what? For some twisted future?”

“I wouldn’t expect a beast like you who enjoys killing others to understand,” she countered. 

He growled. “You took my family from me and those who I called my friends! It was you who made me this way and I will take your head from your shoulders!” Dimitri launched forward, taking his lance in his left hand. The two leaders clashed in the middle, the sounds of their weapons echoing over the field.

“Ingrid is mine,” Edelgard seethed. 

Ingrid hissed between clenched teeth. The Alliance soldiers were retreating as well as most of the Faerghus knights. Dimitri stubbornly remained as he continued to duel with the emperor.

“Hold still, Ingrid.”

Ingrid sighed in relief again as a warm feeling pooled at her side. Dorothea’s hand hovered in a soft green glow, repairing the wound. It wouldn’t be completely healed from the exertion Dorothea spent battling her own encounters on the field but it would be enough for Ingrid to limp out alive. 

“Thank you, Dorothea,” Ingrid said, hushed. She let the songstress help her up as Ingrid caught the last ends of Edelgard’s duel, Sylvain and Felix now at her side, Dimitri begrudgingly retreating with the last bit of his forces. The damage on the imperial side was just as heavy. Ingrid heaved a low sigh. Another deadlock battle.

Edelgard was already giving her orders along with Hubert and the rest of the Black Eagle Strike Force. Sylvain and Felix had come up to Ingrid first, dirt mingling with sweat and blood on their faces. Sylvain’s usual charming smile was gone and Felix’s expression was more grim. Dorothea let Ingrid go as the pegasus knight walked closer to her friends and collapsed in their arms. Sylvain held her upright and even Felix tightened his hold for a brief moment.

“He’s gone,” Ingrid whispered, her voice overwhelmingly sad as she spoke her thoughts. 

“He has been for a long time,” Sylvain said in return. “But at least we’re still together. Different, but together.” 

“Don’t let him twist your emotions like that,” Felix said eventually, his persona coming back after they separated their embrace. “If you have to, use them against him. The boar doesn’t care who we are as long as we stand in his way.”

Ingrid nodded solemnly, fists clenching and releasing.

“We cared for him too, Ingrid. It’s time to move forward,” Sylvain added, eyes glittering in sincerity. 

Ingrid could only agree as she looked onward, Edelgard now turning around and meeting her eyes. There was relief there but Ingrid could tell Edelgard’s emotions were running high as well from the encounter. She saw the little tick in her jaw and the subtle twitch of her fingers around the hilt of Aymr. Ingrid had walked slowly over to greet her and she could see the visible reflex in Edelgard’s arms, to reach for her, to hold her close. Ingrid gave the emperor a comforting smile in return and that seemed to steady Edelgard’s breath. 

The battle field was destroyed. The territories would come back for their dead. But for now, there was only one path forward. Ingrid reached her hand out, hoping to leave the memory of a friend now lost behind along with the rest of the fallen. Edelgard reached back. 

“Let’s go home.”

  
  
  
  


The night was quiet, a stark difference from the battle they were locked in just hours before. The clang of weapons clashing, the battle roars from soldiers, the sounds of anguish at the loss of life, and the rumbling of the earth beneath armored feet. Ingrid stared out the window, silent but it was loud in her mind. She took her armor off, piece by piece, muscles aching from the strain and the bruises. Her lance wound felt better after a visit to the infirmary. But the ghostly memory of the burn, the throb, reminded her of how close she had come to losing. Beneath the moon, her scars of old and new were stark against her pale skin. 

Edelgard had never seen anything so beautiful. They were both scarred, the ways of the world unkind and ruthless in different ways. It only made her want to hold the knight closer. Behind closed doors, they could afford these moments of solace, to shed the weight of the burden that came with creating a new world. For both of them, this day was heavier than the others. 

Edelgard came up quietly behind Ingrid, the knight lost in her own thoughts. Edelgard skimmed her jaw with gentle fingertips, a bit rough from war and endless struggles. Ingrid’s green eyes twinkled a little brighter in recognition as she sighed at the touch, leaning into it as Edelgard helped remove the rest of her armor, feather kisses peppered across her scars as it went. The pads of her fingers gently grazed the newly healed skin of Ingrid’s injury.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Edelgard asked softly as she helped Ingrid with her hair. 

Ingrid sighed once her braids were free. She turned fully to Edelgard then, taking her bare hands in her own, thumb passing over her knuckles. She was free of her armor, a simple nightgown flowing to her knees and her hair flowed with it, loose from her crown. 

It was moments like these that Ingrid loved the most. In return, Edelgard combed her fingers through her short blonde hair, over her temple and down to the back of her neck. The soothing motions caused Ingrid to close her eyes for just a moment, tilting her forehead against Edelgard’s. 

“Talking about it won’t change anything, he’s not in there anymore,” Ingrid said quietly, skimming the curves of Edelgard’s waist and holding her close. 

Edelgard pulled away slightly to look at her knight, too proud to admit the turmoil that they all felt so heavily on the battlefield. 

“I couldn’t begin to tell you the fear I felt when I watched you fall. I would’ve razed everything to the ground if he…,” Edelgard paused, emotions halted in her throat. Ingrid tightened her hold. “Maybe a part of him was right, if anything had happened to you, I would’ve carved a bloodier path like a monster would.”

“El, don’t,” Ingrid cut in. “His choices are his own and you can’t take responsibility for who he’s become. He looked at me and his eyes were empty. He didn’t hesitate and neither should you.”

“I know, but-”

Ingrid moved her hands from Edelgard’s waist to the tops of her shoulders, running her palms along her skin all the way down to her wrists. Scars from battle were scattered but many more were scattered from a different fight, a different war that left Edelgard broken for so long. The Emperor had said once that she made peace with her past but Ingrid still worried that some fragment of her still believed she was nothing more than the sum of tainted dreams and senseless sacrifice. 

“You are leading the people of Fodlan into a bright, new future, El. You know as well as I do if things stay the way that they do, countless others and those we love will be shackled. No monster could ever put the fate of the world before themselves the way you do,” Ingrid consoled, now skimming Edelgard’s jaw with her thumb. She would never get used to the sight of Edelgard looking at her so curiously and so lovingly as if the emotions themselves also baffled her. That this in fact, was real and they were in love, together. “I’ll stay by your side, to the ends of the world. I will protect you until the very end.”

Edelgard chuckled dryly. “I thought we were over your self-sacrificing tendencies, love.” 

Ingrid smiled, amused. “Someone has to look out for you.”

Even after all of these years, years of commanding an army, an empire, leading countless soldiers to battles that could’ve led to their deaths, Edelgard was still unfamiliar with such gentle affections and promises of something beautiful. It was always promises of the power she could achieve, the power she could have to bend others to her will. They never promised that she would live to see past those horrors. She never imagined she would have a passionate romance for as long as she lived. 

When Ingrid had tackled her, barreling right through her walls, she was stunned, mesmerized, and a little afraid. She remembered the way Ingrid looked as clear as day, as if five years hadn’t passed and they were in their academy days only yesterday. Tears lined the edges of her eyes, the desperation in her lips, and the prayer that Edelgard wouldn’t run away again. Even after all the times she ran, Ingrid had chased after her.

Ingrid was the one who showed her she could be more than the results of her suffering. 

Edelgard caressed Ingrid’s jaw, violet eyes soft. “Thank you, my love.”

Ingrid smiled and Edelgard’s heart fluttered and her scarred palms itched to have her closer. 

Bare and vulnerable, Edelgard kissed her knight square on her lips. War torn fingers weaved into her short blonde hair. She tugged at the base of her neck that pulled a low groan from Ingrid’s throat. Ingrid’s hands drifted to the small of Edelgard’s back, pulling her flush against her hips with a whimper drawn from her emperor. Heated kisses were shared, their lips a bruised pink and wet as they pulled away for a moment’s breath before diving back in for one another. They made their way back towards the bed in a careful, practiced dance of limbs. Ingrid lowered Edelgard gently across the expanse of the sheets lined with the scent of Edelgard’s favorite bergamot tea blend and the smell of rain and sun from Ingrid’s soars through the skies. 

Ingrid moved from the embrace of Edelgard’s kiss, a soft gasp escaping her lips. Ingrid kissed her scars, worshipping the soft and rough patches of her skin. Edelgard sighed and closed her eyes, her fingers trailing up and down Ingrid’s back. The muscles of her back flexed beneath her touch and Edelgard felt something in her break, needing more of the knight in her hands. She tugged on the hem of Ingrid’s shirt and felt Ingrid smirk against her collarbone. In one fluid motion, Ingrid rose up on her knees entangled with Edelgard’s legs and pulled her shirt overhead. Under the moonlight, her toned muscles were painted in its light, the shadows hugging the lines of her abdominals and upper arms. 

It always took Edelgard’s breath away. She was perfect, scars and all. Her violet eyes landed on a particular one, three jagged lines that were different from the rest of her complexion that stretched from her collarbone to the top of her chest. The emperor frowned for a split second, the memory of how Ingrid earned that scar a bitter one. Edelgard sat up to meet her, Ingrid now settled in her lap as she laid kisses on the scar. Each kiss asked Ingrid a promise.

_ Don’t leave. _

_ Don’t go without me.  _

_ Stay.  _

Ingrid intercepted her next kiss and pushed Edelgard back down against the pillows. Her hand smoothed over Edelgard’s thigh, the nightgown pooling at her hips. Edelgard lifted her hips and let her lover pull the silk overhead. Each inch of skin revealed, Ingrid followed with her fingers and her lips, Edelgard’s quiet moans filling the air when Ingrid knew exactly where to kiss, where to touch. She settled between her legs, sighing at the warmth of her thighs around her waist. When Ingrid locked eyes with Edelgard’s own, she paused. 

Edelgard’s snow hair splayed across the pillows, the lilac in her eyes blooming with love and desire, and her skin bare for Ingrid’s taking, and hers alone. Ingrid never thought she could love Edelgard anymore than she already did. But when she met Edelgard’s lips once more in a bruising kiss, feeling her grind her body against her own with a keening moan, the knight knew the world she knew would continue to open up in every moment she picked Edelgard apart with her fingertips.

Ingrid’s lips sealed over her breast as she slipped her fingers down, over the hardened plane of her stomach to the delicate V-shape of her hip bones. The way Edelgard shifted beneath her touch, desperate for more contact, but tamed in fear of asking for too much. Ingrid would give her everything. The knight dragged her fingers through wet heat, groaning at the feeling. Ingrid never knew something could feel as blissful as this, the feeling of being desired as Edelgard opened up for her. 

“Gods, El…” 

The crack of her name spilled from the emperor’s lips in reply when Ingrid dove in deep. The emperor bowed to no one, yielded to no enemy. She stood tall in crimson red, dressed in blood and steel, entire armies at the whim of her hands. Yet in Ingrid’s hands, she bent, a perfect arch to her back and a throaty moan ripped from her lips. She clung to her back, leaving welcomed trails of flame next to her scars. The flames that threatened to swallow the both of them in their tangled dance of crazed desperation. 

Edelgard never believed in anyone else completing her, she never imagined she would live to see that someone would. When Ingrid sealed their lips together once again, she whimpered. She would never want to be with anyone else that fit her like this. Someone that filled all the broken pieces of herself and made her feel like those pieces could be every bit as deserving, and worthy. Monsters had torn her apart but Ingrid made her feel everything but shattered. 

“M-my love, I… I-”

A ghost of a kiss grazed over her temple. “I’ve got you El, let go of it.”

Ingrid caught Edelgard every time, through the peak of her high and the cry of her name. She held her gently in her arms, her forehead against her own as Edelgard laced her fingers in the damp tresses of her hair. They caught their breath and shared a laugh in the quiet night. Edelgard held both sides of Ingrid’s face, kissing her square on the lips and brushing her thumbs over her cheekbones as she breathed in deeply. Ingrid sighed contentedly as they pulled away, settling down beside her and pulling the emperor close. Her fingers idly traced patterns on the top of Edelgard’s shoulder, dropping a soft kiss on the crown of her head as she snuggled in closer. 

Edelgard’s hand rested on top of Ingrid’s chest, a strong heartbeat beneath her palm. They whispered promises of sweet endings, the cloak of the night covering them both entangled as it carried them into a peaceful slumber. 

When the sun rose, the rays drifted over them in gentle light. In one another’s embrace, their eyes slowly opened, emerald greeting lilac in the morning dew. The world was still quiet around them, the monastery still dreaming of the next battle. The echo of war was far away for now, death’s grip at the edge of the dawn, looming. But the shadows of that fate left them untouched as they lay hidden beneath the sheets. This was solace, this was the peace they could rarely afford. 

This was what it was like to be alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I am back!
> 
> We're gonna speed things along from this point on! I'm thinking 3-4ish chapters more, maybe! Thanks for sticking with this series and I hope to be updating more now that I caught up on different projects. Kudos, comments, and feedback are always appreciated! ~~this was my first posted remotely nsfw content, go easy askjdhlfjksa~~
> 
> Hit my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/EdelgardEisner) for updates or yelling purposes!
> 
> -Moni


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